Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Los Angeles Rams Pro Bowl wide receiver Puka Nacua had a busy offseason. Over the course of just a few months, Nacua created controversies by engaging in antisemitism, allegedly biting a woman, and checking into rehab.
Speaking to the media at the Los Angeles Rams’ OTAs over the weekend — his first media availability of the 2026 offseason — Puka Nacua detailed what he’s learned during these torrid last few months.
In March, plaintiff Madison Atiabi alleged that on New Year’s Eve, while the two were out in Los Angeles with mutual friends, Nacua made an antisemitic comment at a restaurant — “F all the Jews” — before biting her in a van en route to their next destination.
While no criminal charges were filed against Nacua, Atiabi filed for a temporary restraining order, requesting Nacua stay 50 yards away from her, her home, her job, and her vehicle. The request was temporarily denied until an April 14 hearing, in which Atiabi’s attorney then voluntarily withdrew the request, citing Nacua’s entry into rehabilitation.
Not long after Atiabi’s allegations, it was revealed that Nacua checked into in-patient rehab, specifically a “holistic care facility” in Malibu, in early March.
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua detailed what he’s learned after controversial offseason that saw him check into rehab
During his recent presser, Nacua said that he learned it’s “okay to ask for support.”
“With it being an ongoing legal battle, out of respect for the other party involved, I don’t really have that much to speak on,” Nacua said of Atiabi’s allegations.
“But as I previously stated, [it’s] a moment for me to learn from kind of some of the situations I was putting myself in. And then also having just an awareness of how I’m conducting myself in and out of this football field,” he continued.
“Some of things I feel like I’ve learned is it’s OK to ask for support, and then to recognize the platform that I have and being a professional football player and trying to use that for the betterment of myself and for those around me and the people that have supported me. It’s been a great improvement in my life. I’ll let all those things handle themselves.”
Rams star receiver Puka Nacua on what he learned from his rehab program. He was also asked about his legal battle pic.twitter.com/QGBtmS6SmT
— Gilberto Manzano (@GManzano24) May 28, 2026
Prior to Nacua’s controversial offseason, he also faced self-inflicted backlash after he did a “Jewish emote” during a live stream with Adin Ross just a few days before the Rams faced the Seattle Seahawks in a prime-time Thursday Night Football game that was crucial in deciding the NFC West championship. Nacua released an apology just hours before the game and then went on to have 12 catches for 225 yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 38-37 loss.
Nacua’s string of erratic incidents led some NFL fans to speculate that he was suffering CTE and was on course to become the “next Antonio Brown.”