Aaron Donald plans to play for Rams; Puka Nacua has hip injury
Aaron Donald said Friday that he planned to make his season debut for the Rams against the New York Giants on Monday night, but star receiver Puka Nacua’s status is more hazy because of a hip injury.
Donald, 35, rejoined the Rams after ending a two-year retirement. The three-time NFL defensive player of the year did not travel to Australia for the season-opening defeat by the San Francisco 49ers, but he has participated in several 11-on-11 drills this week.
Asked if he would play on Monday, Donald said, “That’s the plan.”
Donald’s plan? Or the Rams’?
“I think that’s all of our plan,” he said. “We have a conversation, we figure it out.”
Donald said he felt as if he had never been away.
“Kind of getting in the groove of things, understanding everything a lot better out there playing a lot more free, a lot more loose and looking more like myself to me,” he said.
Nacua, who was sidelined for a few weeks during the preseason because of a psoas injury, caught five passes for 74 yards against the 49ers and practiced on Thursday. The psoas is involved in hip movement, so it is not clear whether Nacua’s absence was caused by the same injury or a new one.
Nacua was scheduled to speak with reporters on Friday, but did not do so because he did not practice. Coach Sean McVay is scheduled to speak with reporters on Saturday.
Regardless, the Rams are expected to get a boost from Donald, an eight-time All-Pro.
Edge rusher Byron Young played with Donald as a rookie in 2023. Now he will be playing alongside him again.
“He hasn’t missed a beat,” Young said.