The Los Angeles Rams, already viewed as Super Bowl frontrunners, are making another blockbuster move by bringing back one of the greatest defenders in NFL history.
Aaron Donald, the former Super Bowl champion and three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, is ending his retirement at 35 to return to the Rams, Our News Outlet has confirmed. ESPN first reported the agreement involving the 6-foot-1, 280-pound defensive tackle.
Donald’s agent, Todd France, confirmed to Our News Outlet that the deal is for one year and worth $20 million, with incentives that could push the total value to $30 million.
His return gives Los Angeles a stunning defensive pairing, with Donald joining the Rams’ other major offseason addition, reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, in what projects to be one of the league’s most intimidating front sevens.
Speculation about a Donald comeback had been building since the Rams acquired Garrett from the Cleveland Browns in a massive trade that sent young pass rusher Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick to Cleveland. Donald had also been spotted several times at the Rams’ training facility in recent weeks, though he had not been taking part in practices with the team.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter added fuel to the rumors in June when he shared a graphic on X featuring Garrett alongside Donald, captioning the post: “Next in line in LA.”
Aaron Donald, a former Super Bowl champion and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, is coming out of retirement at 35 to rejoin the Los Angeles Rams, according to ESPN
Rumors intensified in June after ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter posted this tweet
And the Rams didn’t exactly hide the looming possibility of Donald’s return.
Asked about the legendary interior lineman earlier this month, Rams head coach Sean McVay told Sports Central LA: ‘The latest is he’s putting himself in a position to make a decision. He’s working hard, he’s feeling good.’
McVay continued: ‘He’s taken great care of himself in the two years that he’s been off… he’s feeling good so far. I think we’ll have a little bit more of an update once we leave here and get back to Woodland Hills.
‘But things are looking positive. But again, he doesn’t owe us anything. We’ll take it a day at a time.’
Curiously, Donald seemed determined to remain retired when speaking to Our News Outlet’s Jake Fenner a year earlier.
‘For me, retirement’s been pretty good, right? Because I left on my own terms when I wanted to,’ Donald told Our News Outlet.
‘The only thing I would say is, them days you got that aggression, you ain’t able to hit somebody to get it all out, so that’s a big change.’
There had been attempts by other teams to lure him back, though.
‘Obviously, there’s been a few NFL players that reached out to me to try to recruit me on their team, but my football days are done and passed me, and it’s onto the next chapter of life for me,’ he said.
Donald did not name names, adding ‘there’s been at least four guys’ who tried to lure him back via electronic message.
‘I’m like, “My days is over, so I’m done,”‘ Donald said.
A shirtless Donald shows off the Lombardi trophy after the Rams’ Super Bowl win in 2022
Donald had no plans to return to the league he dominated for 10 years until this summer
Donald’s viral workout videos were interpreted by some as hints of a comeback to the NFL
Despite being undersized for the position, Donald was generally considered to be among the strongest players of his era, if not football history.
He put up a record 35 reps on the 225-pound bench press during the 2014 NFL scouting combine before being taken out of Pittsburgh by the St. Louis Rams with the 13th pick in the draft.
Although he’d converted from defensive end only a few years earlier, Donald quickly proved to be a capable interior lineman in the NFL, where he won Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2014.
Donald earned the first of eight All-Pro nods the following season as the Rams moved back to Los Angeles. Over 10 NFL seasons, the Pittsburgh native was named to ten Pro Bowl teams and recorded a whopping 111 sacks, including a league-best 20.5 in 2018.
He was still playing at an All-Pro level in 2023 when Donald had eight sacks en route to his first Super Bowl title. And although he remained in prime condition, Donald opted to retire before the 2024 campaign.
Now he
