the “Donald coming back or not?” thread

Could ex-Rams star Aaron Donald come out of retirement to join forces with Myles Garrett? ‘It’s a possibility’
The three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year might actually return to the NFL after two years in retirement

By John Breech

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/aaron-donald-return-rumors-rams-myles-garrett-trade/

The Los Angeles Rams pulled off one of the biggest shockers of the NFL offseason on Monday when they acquired Myles Garrett in a trade with the Cleveland Browns. The Rams already had one of the best rosters in the league, and it got even better with the addition of the two-time Defensive Player of the Year.

At this point, the only way the Rams’ roster could get any better is if Aaron Donald decided to come out of retirement, but there’s no way that’s going to happen. Right? RIGHT??

Well, don’t look now, but it seems Donald is actually giving some serious consideration to a comeback. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year hung up his cleats following the 2023 season and has been out of the NFL ever since. Donald has said multiple times that he’s happily retired, but Garrett’s arrival in Los Angeles has suddenly changed things.

Donald spoke with multiple people Tuesday and made one thing clear: A return could be on the table.

Donald opens the door for a possible return

During Tuesday’s episode of “The Pat McAfee Show,” McAfee sent a text to Donald asking about a possible return to football. Not only did the former Rams star respond to the text, but he admitted that the Garrett trade has him considering a return.

“It for sure got me thinking,” Donald wrote, according to McAfee. “35, removed two years ago, got to see if that fire can light back up.”

You know Donald is serious because he sent a similar message to four different people over a 24-hour period.

The most detailed text went to NFL reporter Jordan Schultz.

“I’m for sure flirting with the idea,” Donald said of a possible return. “Helluva an opportunity with the Super Bowl in SoFi this year. If I can find the fire, it’s a possibility.”

That’s right, the Super Bowl is once again in the Rams’ home stadium.

Donald has been retired for two full seasons, but if he’s going to return for one last ride, this would be the year to do it. The Rams have a loaded roster, and the Super Bowl is at SoFi Stadium, the same place where he won his first championship. In that 23-20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, Donald made the game-winning play.

Besides McAfee and Schultz, Donald also hinted to Michael Brockers that he might be thinking about a return.

Brockers spent seven seasons as Donald’s teammate, so he knows him as well as anyone, and Brockers had some interesting things to say about Donald on the most recent episode of the “Locked on Rams” podcast, which was recorded Monday after the Rams traded for Garrett.

“I would say that I do have some information that might be considered as some knowledge that others might not have, but I’m not going to tell it all,” Brockers said. “I will say this: My guy is staying ready so he doesn’t have to get ready, and I’m going to leave the audience with that.”

The Rams drafted Brockers No. 14 overall in the 2012 NFL Draft. Two years later, Donald joined the team after the Rams made him the No. 13 overall pick in the 2014 draft. Brockers was with the Rams through the 2020 season, so he spent seven years in the trenches with Donald. It wouldn’t be surprising if he has some insight into Donald’s thinking.

And finally, we have LeSean McCoy. On the most recent episode of his “Speakeasy” podcast McCoy said he actually texted with Donald after the Garrett trade went down.

“You know I sent that text out, ‘AD, what we going to do?’ He thinking about it,” McCoy said.

McCoy and Donald are friends off the field, and they’ve spent some time together now that both are retired. Donald actually beat McCoy in a footrace back in 2024, and if he’s still running with that kind of speed, he shouldn’t have any problem making an NFL return.

Between McAfee, Schultz, McCoy and Brockers, Donald hasn’t been shy about letting everyone know that he might return to the field, which makes it seem like he’s leaning toward a comeback.

How the Rams feel about a possible Donald return

Rams coach Sean McVay was asked about Donald on Tuesday, and he sounded excited about the idea of getting the retired star back on the field.

“Listen, if he’s interested,” McVay said. “Here’s what I’ll say: You talk to Aaron and you see what he’s saying about that.”

Well, we know what Aaron is saying, and he sounds pretty open to a comeback.

Donald spent his entire 10-year career with the Rams and stacked up plenty of accolades along the way. He was a 10-time Pro Bowler and an eight-time first-team All-Pro selection. With a résumé like that, the Rams would likely welcome him back with open arms.

“Aaron’s a guy that I stay really close in touch with and I know the respect that he has for Myles,” McVay said. “Talk to him about the opportunity to be able to bring him on board. If Aaron decides he wants to dust them off at the age of 35, I bet you he could still do it at a pretty high clip.”

One reason a Donald return is realistic is because he’s been staying in shape.

Donald has been staying ready

The only way a comeback makes sense is if Donald is actually in shape, and from all accounts, that appears to be the case.

Brockers mentioned that Donald is staying ready, and if you follow Donald on social media, you know Brockers is NOT kidding. Since retiring following the 2023 season, Donald has shared plenty of workout videos, with the most recent one coming in the past few days.

And this is the part where we note that Donald’s latest workout video certainly includes an interesting caption and an even more interesting hashtag.

it’s worth pointing out that in his latest IG workout post 4 days ago, Aaron Donald in his caption has “#ready” and the song is “ain’t done” by Bixst.

this can’t be a coincidence, right? #NFL #RamsHouse pic.twitter.com/0WnotZXXQP

— Chris Brockman🎙️ (@chrisbrockman) June 1, 2026

That looks like a guy who’s ready to return. Donald is only 35, so it’s certainly possible he still has some gas left in the tank.

One Rams player is already trying to lure Donald out of retirement

After the Rams traded for Garrett on Monday, Jaylen Watson jumped on Twitter and immediately started trying to recruit Donald out of retirement.

After spending his first four seasons with the Chiefs, Watson signed with the Rams in March and is now heading into his first season with the team. Watson has won two Super Bowls in his short career, so he knows what it takes to win a Lombardi Trophy, and he knows adding Donald would help the Rams’ cause.

Donald once teased that he might come out of retirement

At this point, you might be wondering how Donald feels about being retired, and we do have an answer. In May 2025, Donald said he was happily retired.

“As far as playing football, I don’t miss it,” Donald said at the time. “I don’t even have the passion or excitement to want to play football. I will always love football, but once you lose the passion, it was time to walk away.”

The only time Donald has hinted at a return came in August. After rumors started swirling that the Rams might trade for Micah Parsons, Donald sent out an interesting message saying he might have to come out of retirement if the Rams were able to land Parsons.

“That Dline would be unreal,” Donald wrote.

Obviously, the Rams didn’t get Parsons, but this shows why Donald is once again interested in coming out of retirement. Donald wants to play with another game-wrecker on defense and Garrett is a game-wrecker. There aren’t many players in the NFL who possess the presence Parsons brings to a defense, but Garrett is one of them.

Donald is a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, and pairing him with a two-time Defensive Player of the Year in Garrett would give the Rams a defense that would be a nightmare for any opposing offense.

Although Donald is still on the fence about a return, the fact that he’s even considering it sure makes it seem like he’s leaning toward making a comeback.

The Rams are already loaded with talent, and if Donald comes out of retirement, it will be a case of the rich getting richer. Actually, it will be a case of the rich getting so rich that it’s almost unfair.