One of the biggest surprise success stories in the NFL lately has been the play of young wide receiver Puka Nacua. Since being drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL draft, Nacua has been one of the best receivers in the NFL.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look as if fans will be able to watch Nacua tear apart NFL defenses for all that much longer.
“I know I want to retire at the age of 30,” Nacua said in an interview with USA Today. “I’m 23 right now, I’m going into Year 3 – it wouldn’t even be 10 years. It’d be maybe seven or eight. I think of Aaron Donald, to go out at the top, I think it would be super cool.
“But also, I want to have a big family. I want to have at least a starting five. I came from a big family so I need five boys, for sure. But also, like, I want to be able to be a part of their lives and be as active as I can with them.
“The injuries are something you can’t control [as] part of the game, so you never know.
“Hopefully, the rest of the career can go healthy, but you have shoulder surgery, you have knee surgery, you have ankle.
“By the time my kids could be 18, I could be barely walking if you play the game and sustain all the injuries and stuff like that, but I want to retire early.”
It’s a little sad to think about Nacua retiring at such a young age relative to when most stars leave the game, but it’s good to know he’s thinking about his long-term health.