Donald having a better year than his numbers show

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  • September 28, 2016 at 9:16 pm #54064
    Avatar photozn
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    Aaron Donald having a better year than his numbers show

    Michael David Smith

    Aaron Donald having a better year than his numbers show

    Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald hasn’t recorded a sack and has only seven total tackles this season, but that doesn’t tell the story of how Donald has played in the first three games of the year.

    That’s the word from Los Angeles coach Jeff Fisher, who thinks Donald deserves a lot of the credit for the Rams winning the last two games, even if Donald’s contributions aren’t measured in the box score.

    “He’s getting double-teamed and he’s getting all those scheme things that you get offensively,” Fisher said. “It creates other opportunities for someone else. We have to keep moving him around a little bit and create the one-on-ones. Even though his numbers aren’t reflecting it, he’s very productive.”

    Donald had 11 sacks last season and will surely have plenty before this year is done as well, but his contribution to the Rams’ defense goes far beyond the number of sacks he records. Donald is a disruptive presence who commands double teams and impacts every play, every time he’s on the field. With J.J. Watt sidelined, Donald may now be the best defensive player in the NFL.

    September 28, 2016 at 9:20 pm #54065
    Avatar photozn
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    zn wrote:

    Donald may now be the best defensive player in the NFL.

    Reading that makes this Rams fan proud.

    .

    September 28, 2016 at 9:57 pm #54067
    Avatar photoInvaderRam
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    zn wrote:
    zn wrote:

    Donald may now be the best defensive player in the NFL.

    Reading that makes this Rams fan proud.

    .

    yes. yes yes yes! proud for sure. rams can’t let this go to waste. they need to put the pieces around him and quinn (hopefully he can stay healthy for many years) and build a complete defense. a great defense.

    September 28, 2016 at 10:12 pm #54070
    Avatar photoZooey
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    Zero sacks.

    And zero TDs.

    And he can’t even beat college kids at ping pong.

    September 29, 2016 at 11:47 pm #54130
    Avatar photozn
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    Brockers: Rams’ Aaron Donald ‘pissed’ at lack of sacks

    Kevin Patra

    http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000711712/article/brockers-rams-aaron-donald-pissed-at-lack-of-sacks

    Stats can be misleading in football. They are especially deceptive when it comes to interior defensive linemen.

    Disruption is production. A pocket caved in by a defensive tackle can discombobulate even the best quarterback, forcing missed throws and errant decisions. Yet all that disruption doesn’t necessarily lead to sacks. Box score scanners might be hard-pressed to see the difference between three quarterback hits by a defensive tackle manhandling double teams from a “sack” in which a defensive end was the closest player when the quarterback ran out of bounds for a two-yard loss.

    Aaron Donald epitomizes the stat problem in 2016. The Los Angeles Rams’ defensive tackle tramples interior blockers, crumpling pockets. Yet he has zero sacks.

    “You know how pissed he is right now!?” Rams defensive tackle Michael Brockers said, laughing, via ESPN.com. “I would be livid right now!”

    Through three games, Donald has nine tackles, three stuffs and two passes defensed. Even without a single sack, he grades out as the top interior defender by Pro Football Focus. Donald received a 95.8 pass rush grade from the analytics website, Fletcher Cox (named September defensive Player of the Month) was the No. 2 defensive tackle with an 81.4 grade. PFF counted 17 quarterback pressures from Donald.

    You could understand why frustration might mount over the lack of sacks, but Donald still has his sense of humor. At a recent meeting with coaches, the DT cracked: “Why won’t these quarterbacks take their sacks like men?”

    “He’s getting double-teamed and he’s getting all those scheme things that you get offensively,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said. “It creates other opportunities for someone else. We have to keep moving him around a little bit and create the one-on-ones. Even though his numbers aren’t reflecting it, he’s very productive.”

    Numbers deceive. With or without the sack stats, Donald is one of the most disruptive defensive players on the planet. When it comes to Defensive Player of the Year discussions, anyone leaving out Donald is clearly only checking box scores.

    September 30, 2016 at 12:32 am #54131
    Herzog
    Participant

    17 qb pressures in 3 games? Isn’t that high?

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