Who are Puka Nacua’s parents Lionel and Penina? A look into Rams WR’s family

After a dismal last season, there were significant worries that the Los Angeles Rams passing offense would suffer substantially without Cooper Kupp, but rookie Puka Nacua made sure that the loss wasn't as noticeable.

Let's discuss the youngster's family history and parents. On May 29, 2001, Puka Nacua was born to Penina Nacua and Lionel Nacua.

According to The Salt Lake Tribune, Puka's grandmother and her daughter Penina moved to the United States from West Samoa when she was small. That was where Penina met Lionel.

Three of Penina Nacua's six children have chosen to pursue careers in football. While bringing up her kids in Las Vegas, she and her late husband, Lionel, often thought it was crucial to encourage them to play sports.

"When the kids were all small, my husband and I always believed that sports were vital for them. So everyone was sort of expected to be active and participate in sports," according to Penina.

After Penina's husband passed away in 2012, she made the difficult choice to relocate her family to Utah Valley in 2013. That was after the oldest, Nacua, finished school, so that she would be able to see all of her children's games while keeping everybody close by.

Even though Lionel Nacua passed away a couple of years ago, his impact can still be felt by Kai, Samson and Puka Nacua, three of his children. Lionel was the family's unifying force and a formidable presence. That was particularly for Puka, who was in seventh grade when his father passed away; filling the vacuum left by his absence proved to be a challenge.

He said:

"It was difficult. Not having him there was definitely different. Moving here, though, distracted us from it. We ultimately came to terms with the fact that our father wasn't present and that we needed to support one another by being strong. Recovery has taken a long time."

Puka Nacua has frequently expressed gratitude to his mother, Penina, for keeping the family united and sustaining every member during trying times. To prepare her children for life on and off the pitch, Penina reportedly enforced tight restrictions at home.

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Puka Nacua has had a strong start to his NFL career

In their opening NFL regular-season game of the year against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams astonished everyone by winning 30-13.

Puka Nacua, a newcomer starting his first NFL game, was quarterback Matthew Stafford's top target in the contest.

Sean McVay, the team's coach, had previously cautioned the football community that Nacua was poised for a great year. His faith in the 22-year-old wide receiver against the Seahawks was vindicated.

The coach will hope that the former BYU star's effort on Sunday was a precursor of things to come.