“They’re Little Brothers”: After Taking Shots at NFL Officials, Puka Nacua Targets the Chargers

There is perhaps no player in the NFL hotter than Los Angeles Rams wideout Puka Nacua right now. He has recorded seven or more receptions and 165 or more receiving yards in each of his last two games. He has even made up ground on Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the race for the receiving yards crown, and he is playing with sheer confidence.

Nacua, a fifth-round pick in 2023, has been as productive at the wide receiver position as anyone since he joined the league. However, he has not typically made headlines for off-the-field comments. Well, until now.

For some reason, Nacua was on a stream with a couple of famous streamers this week. They asked him which of the L.A. teams—the Rams or the Chargers—had the larger following in the City of Angels. Nacua did not hesitate to claim Los Angeles supremacy for his Rams.

“It’s definitely us, we RUN LA, they’re lil brothers, we CHARGE them rent to play at our SoFi Stadium,” said the wideout.

Puka Nacua says the LA Rams run the football scene in Los Angeles, calling the Chargers their LIL BROS 😭

“We RUN LA, they’re lil brothers, we CHARGE them rent to play at our SoFi Stadium” pic.twitter.com/QWoOZLRi4L

— novara (@AdinUpdate) December 17, 2025

And while that last bit about charging them rent may seem like mere trash talk, it actually is not. Rams owner Stan Kroenke financed the building of SoFi Stadium, so the stadium and all of its non-Chargers revenue belong to him and the Rams. The Chargers are mere tenants, renting the place out eight or nine times per year. That reality has got to sting.

But it’s also not as if the Chargers can argue much. Their fans have not come from San Diego to Los Angeles in the same strength as Rams fans have from St. Louis to Los Angeles. Every week, pundits talk about how opposing teams often have the fan advantage when they play the Chargers in Los Angeles. From the eye test, that certainly happens a few times each year.

That said, Nacua didn’t reserve his trash talk just for his little L.A. He also took a swing at NFL referees as well.

“The refs are the worst. These guys are lawyers, they wanna be on TV too.”

https://twitter.com/MLFootball/status/2001325770954989982?s=20

Nacua’s anger with the referees likely stems from many instances. One of the most recent, however, is when they flagged him for taunting for flexing after he made a big catch against the Philadelphia Eagles earlier this year. Video shows he was clearly not in any defender’s face, so the taunting rule should not have been applied.

Even still, it’s a bold move to publicly criticize the guys who essentially hold your fate in their hands. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Nacua pick up an extra offensive pass interference or holding penalty next week when his Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks in a battle for the NFC West title.