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Aaron Donald might not be done with football after all.
The retired Rams legend has been mostly quiet since walking away from the NFL three years ago. But NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Thursday that a comeback is now a “real possibility” – though Donald himself hasn’t made up his mind yet.
So what’s holding him back? According to Rapoport, it comes down to whether Donald can actually get his body back into football condition. Instagram shape and football shape, it turns out, are two very different things.
“Obviously, we’ve seen him on Instagram. He’s still jacked. He’s still lifting. He has basically been getting himself in the kind of shape that you do when you take a lot of Instagram videos.
“Football shape is a little bit different, so it certainly sounds like Aaron Donald is going to start working out football-wise and take the next little bit of time to say, ‘Can I get in football shape enough to be the Aaron Donald that I was’ or the best and closest thing to that when he left the NFL.”
The Garrett Trade Changed Everything
This whole conversation started picking up steam right after the Rams pulled off their blockbuster trade for Myles Garrett, poaching the Cleveland Browns superstar in one of the offseason’s biggest moves.
Add Garrett to a roster that came within four points of reaching the Super Bowl last season, and it’s easy to see why the Rams are sitting as the clear favorite at most sportsbooks right now. Donald hasn’t exactly discouraged the speculation either – between cryptic Instagram posts and a text exchange with ESPN’s Pat McAfee, where he admitted the Garrett trade “for sure” got him thinking about returning.
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He’s also been in contact with Rams head coach Sean McVay. Unsurprisingly, McVay’s reaction to the idea has been pure excitement.
Don’t Expect the Old Aaron Donald
If Donald does suit up again, don’t picture him playing every single snap like he used to. Rapoport laid out what a realistic return would actually look like for the 35 year old.
“There’s no real deadline here. I don’t believe, based on what I know, that Aaron Donald is going to be showing up for training camp for the Rams. If he does show up, it would probably even be toward the end of training camp and could even be into the season because he’s not going to be playing 50 or 60 plays on defense. He’ll be more of a spot guy. But yes, Aaron Donald does seem to be exploring this possibility.”
That’s the key detail here.
Even a reduced role changes the math for opposing offenses. Think about it – a “spot guy” version of Aaron Donald is still Aaron Donald.
Between the two of them, Garrett and Donald have combined for 236.5 career sacks, five Defensive Player of the Year awards, and 17 Pro Bowl selections. These aren’t just stat-sheet guys, either. Both have a way of warping entire game plans – drawing double teams, opening things up for everyone else on the field. Put them on the same defensive line, even part-time, and offensive coordinators are going to have some sleepless nights.
Whether this actually happens or not, one thing’s clear: it’s rare to see a Super Bowl favorite with this kind of exclusive access to the single biggest addition still available on the market.
