Aaron Donald made it official on Sunday, confirming what many assumed was already a forgone conclusion by announcing his plans to come out of retirement to help the Los Angeles Rams compete for a Super Bowl in 2026.
Donald, who initially retired in March of 2024, agreed to a 1 year, $20M deal with incentives that could escalate the total compensation to $30M. Although he’s been practicing with the team for some time now, head coach Sean McVay was noncommittal about whether the star defensive lineman would suit up in Week 1 of the regular season.
“Obviously, seeing what was being done with this team, pieces that was getting brought here. It’s like, ‘OK, that’s a complete team,'” Donald said Sunday evening. “And then you see other moves they make and it’s like, ‘OK, I wish I was still out there playing right about now.'”
“It really wasn’t an easy decision,” Donald said. “It took a lot of hard work, a lot of long conversations with a lot of different people but felt good enough to make the decision to come back and do this.”
“Just wanted to take my time and make the right decision because once you choose to come back, you all the way back in,” Donald continued. “Can’t be halfway in, got to be all the way in it. So, had to get to that point where I felt like I will feel like I’m 100% committed to playing football again because the last two years been amazing.”
Donald’s resume is about as impressive as they come in the NFL. A 3x Defensive Player of the Year, 8x First Team All-Pro, 10x Pro Bowler, Defensive Rookie of the Year, and Super Bowl LVI champion, he’s already viewed as lock to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible.
However, that eligibility clock appears to be set to reset as the 35 year old prepares to lineup alongside Myles Garrett this fall to form a pass rush duo that’s sure to give opposing coordinators nightmares.
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