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The Los Angeles Rams have an interesting mix of younger and experienced stars across their roster. They have a young and up-and-coming defense, led by pass rusher Jared Verse, and an offense led by 32-year-old receiver Davante Adams, 37-year-old Matthew Stafford, and 23-year-old receiver Puka Nacua.
Despite his early stardom at a young age, Nacua spoke on the "Join the Lobby" podcast and talked about how he wants to retire at the age of 30, discussing how Aaron Donald going out on top was a big inspiration to him, and the fact he wants a big family like he had growing up.
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"I know I want to retire at the age of 30," he said. "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. But also, I want to have a big family. I want to have at least a starting five."
Nacua is talking about retirement after playing just two seasons in the NFL. While the sport of football is very violent and grueling on the human body, it seems a bit worrisome for a young player to be talking about retirement so early.
It will be interesting to see if this mindset changes or not, especially with him playing with some older players. Another factor that could decide if Nacua follows through with this plan or not is injuries.
The young receiver struggled last year with a knee injury in just his second season after a stellar rookie season where he played in all 17 games.
If the 23-year-old continues to struggle with various injuries during his career, his plan to retire early will surely become even more enticing as time goes on.
The Rams also are in an interesting position as a franchise currently, making Nacua's potential to retire on top a hard thing to predict as of now. While guessing any team's position in seven years is difficult, the Rams have an interesting roster makeup.
Their roster entering last season was the second-youngest in the NFL with an average age of 25.7 years old. Most of that resides on defense, as Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp, now a Seattle Seahawks receiver, were both over the age of 30.
That means that in seven years, the defense has a great chance to still be good, but Nacua will have a new quarterback throwing him the ball by then assuming Stafford retires before 44 years old.
For now, Nacua remains a key part of the team, but apparently, it won't be for too much longer.
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About the writer
Seth Quinn is a contributing sports writer based in Massachusetts. His focus is on sports, primarily the NFL and NBA. He has in depth ... Read more