Donald’s back (official)

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  • August 30, 2026 at 4:31 pm #165687
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    Aaron Donald unretires, will play for Rams in 2026

    Stu Jackson

    https://www.therams.com/news/aaron-donald-unretires-will-play-for-rams-in-2026?utm_source=sfmcemail&utm_medium=083026_AD_Returns&utm_campaign=08_30_2026&utm_term=Trades+And+Transactions+-+A+Donald&utm_id=145196&sfmc_id=00QUW00000S9vHH2AZ&aid=&CFC_RAMS=083026_AD_Returns

    He was “complete” and “full” when he retired on March 15, 2024.

    On August 30, 2026, the appetite has returned.

    Three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and legendary Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald announced Sunday he is coming out of retirement to rejoin the team.

    The possibility of Donald unretiring first surfaced when head coach Sean McVay reached out to Donald for his opinion on defensive end Myles Garrett as the team was exploring a trade for Garrett.

    When players arrived for training camp on July 25, McVay confirmed Donald was going through a “very strict, regimented process” to put himself in a position to decide whether he wanted to play. McVay July 29 said he and Donald discussed timelines and remained in contact. Though he declined to specify what those timelines were, McVay did say Donald’s training was going “really well.”

    The closest thing to a timeline McVay disclosed was when he said on July 31 that he didn’t expect there to be an update on Donald until after the team returned from training camp to its Woodland Hills practice facility. However, that same day, McVay said that “if there’s an arrow, it’s trending upward,” the strongest hint yet that a Donald comeback was going to happen.

    On Sunday, Donald made it official. And after rejoicing in the spring of 2024, quarterbacks are mourning – or rather, scrambling – in the fall of 2026 now that Donald’s hunger is back.

    August 30, 2026 at 4:55 pm #165690
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    Erica Donald@EriDon_99
    I let him out the house y’all

    Mina Kimes@minakimes
    Obviously remains to be seen what he’s got left in the tank, but when Donald retired in 2023, he ranked 1st in pass rush win rate amongst DTs. Garrett was 2nd amongst edges that year.

    Now they’re on the same line.

    Jourdan Rodrigue@JourdanRodrigue
    Here’s an inside look at the complex game plan the Rams will have for Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett: LINE UP AND GO

    Brandon Thorn@BrandonThornNFL
    AD and Garrett together is enough to get excited about but now the hierarchy of the room also shifts so Turner is 3rd in the pecking order followed by Fiske and Young. That 5-man stack combined with D-coordinator Chris Shula’s simulated pressure/blitz/overload packages is scary.

    Ian Rapoport@RapSheet
    AD is B-A-C-K: #Rams star Aaron Donald is coming of retirement to play for his old team with a 1-year, $20M deal with playoff incentives up to $30M

    Albert Breer@AlbertBreer
    Rams DT Aaron Donald’s existing deal had its final year knocked down to the minimum, so that’s what he’ll be reinstated under. It’ll then, I’m told, be replaced with an incentive-heavy 1-year deal (w/per-game roster bonuses, playtime & playoff incentives) that maxes out at $30M.

    August 30, 2026 at 5:16 pm #165693
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    Adam Schefter@AdamSchefter
    After two seasons away, Donald now will join forces with Myles Garrett, giving the Rams two of the top defensive linemen in NFL history.

    Sam Monson@SamMonsonNFL
    Aaron Donald owed it to science to unretire and line up next to Myles Garrett just to see what would happen.

    Field Yates@FieldYates
    My nuanced take on the Rams’ offseason is that adding Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald is good.

    Sarah Barshop@sarahbarshop
    The Rams will be the first team to enter the season with multiple players who have won multiple Defensive Player of the Year awards, according to ESPN Research.

    Sam Farmer@LATimesfarmer
    The unretired Aaron Donald is one-of-three players in NFL history to have won the Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award three times (2017, 2018 and 2020)

    I asked Derek Carr about the possibility of Aaron Donald unretiring, which has now happened. He said Donald was the best defensive player he ever faced, followed by Myles Garrett and Von Miller.

    What should an opposing quarterback do when facing both Donald and Garrett? “Pray”

    Chase Daniel@ChaseDaniel
    Myles Garrett, Braden Fiske, Poona Ford, Kobie Turner, & Byron Young.

    That D-Line line is truly going to be one of the best we’ve ever seen

    August 30, 2026 at 5:20 pm #165696
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