Puka Nacua wants to ‘go out at the top’ like Aaron Donald and retire at 30

Puka Nacua is still on his rookie contract, but the Los Angeles Rams wide receiver is already thinking about his retirement plans. 

“I know I want to retire at the age of 30,” Nacua said, while guest starring on the “Join the Lobby” podcast on Monday. “I’m 23 right now, I’m going into Year 3 — 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.”

Donald retired in March 2024 after 10 seasons with the Rams. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year might not have been at the peak of his career, but he was certainly still in his prime at the time of the decision. He was voted to the All-Pro first team for the eighth time in his career during the 2023 season, in which he had eight sacks and 53 total tackles. He left the game behind at 32 years old and just two seasons after the Rams won Super LVI over the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Seeing such a respected teammate in Donald make that decision impacted Nacua, who wants to follow a similar path. 

“I want to have a big family,” Nacua said, specifying that he hopes for at least five boys. 

“I want to be a big part of their lives. And be as active as I can with them. Injuries are something that you can’t control, and a part of the game. You never know. Hopefully, the rest of my career, I can be healthy. But, if you have shoulder surgery, you have knee surgery, you have ankle surgery, by the time my kids could be 18, I could barely be walking.” 

Nacua was selected in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, and went on to set rookie records for most receptions (105) and receiving yards (1,486). In 2024, though, he played just 11 games after suffering a knee injury in the Rams’ opener against the Detroit Lions. He finished his second season with 79 catches for 990 yards and three touchdowns.

Nacua has sustained knee, chest and shoulder injuries throughout two NFL seasons. He also sat out the Senior Bowl in January 2023 with a concussion. 

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