Aaron Donald has not told the Rams yet that he wants to return to the NFL, but the three-time Defensive Player of the Year did go to the team facility to workout last week with the intention of seeing how it would feel. This is according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who told the Pat McAfee Show on Monday that Donald’s appearance at the Rams’ facilities last week was not one of the routine check-ins that he’s been doing for the last couple of years during retirement.
It was, in fact, a practice run to “see how he felt” and “how he reacted” to being back with the Rams. That is yet one more piece of evidence that Donald’s return from retirement is not just a rumor, but an idea the future Hall of Famer is weighing on a daily basis now.
Donald’s return has been in the works for weeks.
Advertisement
Since the Rams traded for Myles Garrett on June 1, rumors have circulated that Donald could be lured out of retirement to join him on L.A.’s defensive line. At first, the notion was dismissed as typical fan fodder based on “What if?”, with Donald’s wife Erika even going as far as to laugh off the premise on X.
But nobody’s laughing now.
It started with a text from Donald to McAfee that Garrett’s acquisition had him thinking about it, continued with Schefter’s report on June 23 that coming out of retirement was “gaining momentum”, some eye emojis by Donald on Instagram, and has now included TMZ photos of Donald practice at the facilities.
Advertisement
As many Rams fans noted, Donald regularly works out there.
However, now the report is that Donald’s appearance last week was not typical. It was a test run.
That would be five combined Defensive Player of the Year awards. There’s no telling what Donald has left in the tank, but he’d only return if he felt he could play at a high level. Donald doesn’t want to look like Philip Rivers did during his short stint with the Colts last season.
(We can respect the hell out of Rivers for coming back after five years off and being serviceable, but he was also practically incapable of throwing an accurate pass with velocity beyond 10 yards.)
Advertisement
The Rams also have Byron Young, Braden Fiske, Kobie Turner, Poona Ford, Josaiah Stewart, and others. The defensive front would be truly ridiculous.
Will Donald return?
Nobody knows yet. Not even Aaron Donald. But he’s actively seeking the answer to that question as we speak.
