Sean McVay, Los Angeles Rams
Getty
Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay looks on during a game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Les Snead and the Los Angeles Rams will have to open up the checkbook for wide receiver Puka Nacua, and the starting point just took another leap.
Nacua has been one of the most dominant receivers since he entered the league, including leading the NFL in receptions. He has also endured some turbulence, some of which is of his own creation. All of that will be laid out plainly during contract talks.
However, the bottom line will always be the bottom line, and the bar has been raised.
Puka Nacua Set to Cash in With Rams
Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams
GettyPuka Nacua #12 of the Los Angeles Rams celebrates after defeating the Carolina Panthers in the NFC Wild Card Playoffs.
Nacua and the Rams were bystanders as the NFC West rival Seattle Seahawks made history with Jaxon Smith-Njigba, inking the reigning Offensive Player of the Year, two-time Pro Bowler, and 2025 First Team All-Pro to a contract extension.
There will be a ripple effect.
“ESPN Sources: Offensive Player of the Year and Super-Bowl champion Jaxon Smith-Njigba reached agreement with the Seattle Seahawks on a four-year, $168.6 million contract extension that now makes him the highest-paid WR in NFL history,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on X on March 23.
“The deal averages $42.15 million per year, and includes over $120 million guaranteed, both setting records for any wide receiver.”
Schefter added in a follow-up post that “Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s deal with the Seahawks is the latest jump in the WR market, one that will impact their division rival Rams, who could be working on a Puka Nacua extension this offseason,” Schefter posted in a follow-up.
“Nacua is entering the final year of his deal in 2026 and now has a new bar to clear.”
The Rams have not indicated anything was close with Nacua, who still has one year remaining on his four-year, $4.1 million rookie-scale contract.
Puka Nacua vs Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Tale of the Tape
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks
GettyJaxon Smith-Njigba #11 of the Seattle Seahawks looks on during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Rams.
Nacua led the NFL in catches with 129 grabs for 1,715 yards and 10 TDs for the Rams during the 2025 regular season.
Smith-Njigba, 24, was the 20th overall pick of the 2023 draft. He is coming off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. He led the league with 1,793 yards, adding 10 touchdowns on 119 receptions, earning Offensive Player of the Year.
But Nacua has been more productive and outplayed his draft pedigree to a greater degree.
Nacua, taken 177th overall in that same class, is a two-time Pro Bowler and one-time First Team All-Pro as well.
Nacua ranks second in receiving yards, fourth in targets and receptions, and 20th in TD grabs since entering the league, per Stathead, outpacing Smith-Njigba in all but the final category. He trails his peer by one TD catch, doing so with Cooper Kupp and Davante Adams as teammates.
Puka Nacua Contract Talks Will Be Layered Discussion
Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams
GettyPuka Nacua #12 of the Los Angeles Rams warms up before a game against the Baltimore Ravens.
In addition to having Sean McVay as his head coach, Nacua has had Matthew Stafford at quarterback. Smith-Njigba had Geno Smith, who is now with the New York Jets.
On his second head coach, he also spent last season catching passes from Sam Darnold.
That will be an interesting subplot of the talks between Nacua and the Rams as both sides look for the best outcome. Moreover, the Rams must account for the fact that Stafford is closer to retirement than not at this stage of his career, and how that will affect Nacua moving forward.