The Vikings only lost 3 games in the regular season and 2 of those were against the Detroit Lions, but the third came in Week 8 against the Los Angeles Rams. The key to Sean McVay leading a plan to beat Minnesota and a top-5 defense was the surprise appearance of receiver Puka Nacua, according to Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Flores noted that he was “a little bit surprised” that Nacua was playing at all given that the star second-year receiver had been out since Week 1 with a knee injury and it was only that week that he had his practice window opened. “There was a little bit of scrambling,” before the game to re-prepare for the Rams with Nacua, says Flores.
Outsiders speculated that at most Nacua would play a few series as he recovered so quickly from a knee injury, but instead he took over the game: 9 targets, 7 catches, 106 yards in his return.
Brian Flores said the Vikings found out about four hours before the first Rams game that Puka Nacua was going to play, adding they were “a little bit surprised that he was out there” and saying there was “a little bit of scrambling” to prepare for the fact he’d play.
The Rams,…
— Ben Goessling (@BenGoessling) January 7, 2025
Nacua has been the Rams MVP this season, catching 79 passes for 990 yards despite missing six games. He led the NFL in most 100-yard games too.
That could by why Flores went out of his way to say that the Rams are “very different” with Nacua compared to without:
- 8-3 when Puka plays
- 2-4 when Puka does not play
Nacua is coming off of a 10-catch, 129 yard game in L.A.’s NFC West clinching win over the Arizona Cardinals in Week 18. He’s now looking to repeat the 181-yard day he had against the Lions in last year’s wild card game, but this time with the Rams coming out as the victors.