Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, who spent time in a rehabilitation facility during the offseason, detailed his problems with alcohol in an interview that aired Thursday on Netflix.
“I was never one to share my fears or my worries,” Nacua said in an interview that aired ahead of the broadcast of the Rams’ season opener vs. the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne, Australia. “I was always finding different ways to escape from that tension or that stress.”
In terms of what he used for stress relief, Nacua said, “Alcohol was definitely a thing for me. Just kind of drowning myself so that the issues and the stress that I was feeling never had the opportunity to be addressed. But right when I entered the rehabilitation center, I was able to have open and honest conversations.”
Discussing what led him to his low point, Nacua said, “Just I think some of the change in lifestyle that came up to me, becoming a public figure, the stress of performing at a high level, and then I recently became a father.
“My son is 10 months old, and navigating that co-parenting relationship with his mother, I would kind of isolate myself to feel like the weight of all the issues and things that I have was stuck on my shoulders, and not being willing to ask for help.”
Last season, Nacua led the NFL with 129 receptions, racking up 1,715 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns in 16 games. However, the 25-year-old All-Pro was involved in several off-field controversies.
In December, Nacua was seen on a livestream performing a simulated touchdown celebration that included an antisemitic undertone. He later issued an apology, saying he “had no idea this act was antisemitic in nature.”
He also was the subject of a civil lawsuit filed by a woman who alleges that Nacua bit her on the shoulder at a dinner party after he allegedly yelled, “F– all the Jews.” The plaintiff, Madison Atiabi, is Jewish.
Nacua’s attorney, Levi McCathern, denied that Nacua made such a remark and described the bites as “horseplay.”
Through his first three NFL seasons, Nacua had 313 catches for 4,191 yards and 19 TDs.