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Rams’ Aaron Donald did ‘not really’ consider retiring amid offseason speculation on future

By Jourdan Rodrigue

https://theathletic.com/4507172/2023/05/10/aaron-donald-rams-future-comments/?source=nfltw

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Los Angeles Rams superstar defensive lineman Aaron Donald did “not really” consider retiring this offseason amid speculation about his future in football.

“You never want to end your career the way it was last year,” Donald said Wednesday, speaking publicly for the first time since a high ankle sprain ended his season last November.
“It never really crossed my mind.”

After going 5-12 last year, the Rams have overhauled much of their defensive roster, leaving Donald and only a few others in starting roles with any meaningful game experience. In the process, they parted ways with stars Jalen Ramsey, Bobby Wagner and Leonard Floyd — leaving intact only the three players they gave new contracts to in the spring of 2022: Donald, quarterback Matthew Stafford and receiver Cooper Kupp.

“That’s part of football,” Donald said. “I can’t control that, obviously. I made a commitment to this organization to do everything I can to do my part. It’s different than what we’ve seen in the past — a lot of young guys are going to have to step up and have to be a huge part to helping us have success.”

Donald, 31, suffered the high ankle sprain during the Rams’ Week 12 game at Kansas City, but played through the injury before he was shut down for the rest of the year.

Donald had the tightrope procedure to repair the injury, multiple people with direct knowledge of the procedure confirmed to The Athletic in March. That is the same procedure Kupp had last year, to repair the same injury.

Donald confirmed the surgery on Wednesday.

“It was different, the first time I’ve ever been hurt in my career,” Donald said. “I’m at 100 percent now, so that’s all that matters. Feeling good.”

Donald, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year and future Hall of Fame inductee, contemplated retirement after the Rams won Super Bowl LVI.

But later that spring, the Rams re-worked Donald’s existing contract to boost his pay, ultimately a three-year, $95 million deal with $65 million in guarantees ($46.5 million guaranteed at signing).

Importantly, Donald’s deal also includes a no-trade clause, multiple people with direct knowledge of the contract said. Because Donald once speculated retirement, the Rams’ catastrophic 2022 season prompted some pundits to question whether he’d ponder it again. Donald addressed that speculation on Twitter in the winter, before his comments to reporters on Wednesday, and has been at the Rams facilities for the voluntary early phases of spring OTAs.

General manager Les Snead said earlier this month that when he and coach Sean McVay were outlining their offseason plans — including bringing in over 40 rookies to fill out the roster — Donald told them, “just make sure (the rookies) care.”

“You kind of got an idea of what was going on as far as certain moves they were going to have to make,” Donald said. “It was more (about), if you’re bringing young guys in — as long as they’ve got the mindset to work, and they’ve got the right mindset to just go out there and do what they need to do at a high level, and willing to put that work in, I can work with that.”