Why aren’t Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua playing for the Rams against the 49ers?

The Los Angeles Rams go into their next game in the NFL 2024 season, against the San Francisco 49ers (Sunday 22, 4:25 p.m. ET), under the obligation to switch things up drastically due to injury concerns surrounding two key players.

Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua are both ruled out of the game against the 49ers due to physical issues that are currently keeping them locked down in the injury bay at SoFi Stadium.

The Rams’ passing attack has been organised round the missing duo, who have combined for 53% of the receiving yards, 46% of receptions and 13 of the team’s 29 passing touchdowns over the past 20 Games.

Who could replace Kupp and Nacua?

“Any time you have injuries, you feel bad for the person, but you don’t feel bad for yourself or your unit or your team. It’s just time to go”, offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said on Thursday.

As for who might replace the duo, there are certainly options for Sean McVay and the coaching staff, including DeMarcus Robinson, Tyler Johnson and Tutu Atwell, and rookie Jordan Whittington. Johnson himself sounded excited about the prospect of facing the 49ers, saying “we can’t wait to go out there and do what Coach asks us to do on Sunday. We look forward to being us. We can’t be Coop or Puka, we’ve just got to be each one of our own individuals.”

The Rams head coach confirmed that as well as Cooper Kupp, tight end Davis Allen is ruled out; kicker Joshua Karty, defensive lineman Bobby Brown III, and cornerback Cobie Durant are all listed as questionable.

The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers at SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California on Sunday, September 22 with kick-off set for 4:25 p.m. ET. The Game can be watched on FOX as well as on fubo, who offer a free trial.