Puka Nucua of the Los Angeles Rams has had two seasons in the sun of Tinseltown since he was drafted in the fifth-round out of Brigham Young University in 2023. He is in still in the honeymoon period of his career, but he is already planning his retirement.
The San Francisco 49ers can't wait to help him pack up his gear.
The former Cougar revealed on a podcast recently he wants to hang up his shoulder pads when he hits the age of 30. For those counting, Nucua would have six more seasons in the league.
"I know I want to retire at the age of 30," Nacua said. "I'm 23 right now, I'm going into Year 3 -- so like 10 years. 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."
Related: 49ers Defensive Tackle Finds New Team Before Release
Nacua credits his family as his motivation to retire young. He was one of five children born to his parents. He is looking forward to having a family of his own and being a full-time dad.
"I want to be able to be a part of their lives and be as active as I can with them," Nacua said. "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."
Related: Is 49ers Brock Purdy Really Worth Dak-Beating $325 Million?
Copyright 2025 Athlon Sports. All rights reserved.
This story was originally published March 27, 2025 at 5:27 AM.