Rams get Puka Nacua back, lose Aaron Donald for Eagles game

Wide receiver Puka Nacua returns from a two-game absence Sunday in Philadelphia, but Aaron Donald is out with a back injury as the 1-2 Rams visit the Eagles.

The Los Angeles Rams will head east on Sunday with good and bad news on the injury front. Wide receiver Puka Nacua is set to return from a hip issue for the road matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles, while defensive tackle Aaron Donald has been ruled out with a back injury. The developments come with Los Angeles sitting at 1-2 and needing a win to get its season back on course.

Nacua, the team's star wideout, has missed the last two games while dealing with the hip injury. He turned in an encouraging practice session on Thursday, prompting coach Sean McVay to confirm that he will be available to start against Philadelphia.

Donald's situation moved in the other direction. The veteran defender will not play on Sunday because of a back injury, and McVay indicated the choice reflected caution toward a player who would otherwise push through the discomfort. "He is as tough as it gets. Just not feeling good enough," McVay said, via Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times. "He would do it and he could probably go be productive, but part of our job is to protect these tough dudes like him from themselves."

The setback comes at a poor time for a defense that was built around Donald's comeback. His decision to come out of retirement was one of the biggest storylines of the offseason, and it immediately placed the Rams among the Super Bowl favorites.

Los Angeles had also raised expectations by trading for Myles Garrett, giving the roster two premium defensive pieces. But Garrett went down with an injury after Week 1, which placed even more responsibility on Donald along the defensive line.

The early-season results have added to the frustration. After a victory over the New York Giants appeared to steady things, the Rams squandered a 16-point lead in a 30-26 loss to the Denver Broncos, dropping them to 1-2 on the year.

Word that Donald would sit out against the Eagles prompted a sharp reaction from the fan base. One supporter wrote that the player must be regretting his decision to return, while others joked that age had caught up with him after just a couple of games back. Additional posts questioned how the defense could perform at the same level without him, even with Nacua's return softening the blow on the other side of the ball, and one fan complained that the late-career comeback risked coloring how Donald is remembered.

There was at least one piece of favorable news for Los Angeles beyond Nacua's return. Philadelphia will be without wide receiver DeVonta Smith, its best pass-catcher, after he was ruled out with a hamstring injury.

The Rams and Eagles are scheduled to kick off Sunday, October 4, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. The game begins at 1:00 PM EDT and will be broadcast on FOX.