Aaron Donald was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams (formerly St. Louis Rams) as the 13th pick of the first round in the 2014 NFL draft, and since then, he has been in the league.
He is an NFL defensive player from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and he still plies his trade with the Los Angeles Rams in the National Football League. He was just 23 years old at the time he was drafted and has been named Defensive Player of the year three times – amongst other awards.
Aaron Donald Was Drafted In 2014
The National Football League (NFL) Draft is an annual event where teams select players. Following an outstanding collegiate career and his amazing performance at the NFL Combine where he set the record for fastest 40-yard dash time for a defensive tackle with a 4.68, Aaron Donald was full of anticipation.
And thankfully, but unsurprisingly, in May 2014, during the NFL draft that year, he was selected by St Louis Rams – now Los Angeles Rams. He came second place among all the defensive tackle candidates on the SB Nation top 200 big board. Also, he was picked with the 13th overall pick in the first round. At that time, he was just 23 years old.
After the draft, he signed a 4-year, fully guaranteed $10.13 million amateur contract with the Los Angeles Rams, in June. The contract included a $5.69 million signing bonus as well as an option to extend by a year.
Aaron Donald led his new pro team to several victories in his first season. First, it was the 34-6 defeat with 4 tackles against Minnesota Vikings, then the win over Tampa Bay Buccaneers and San Francisco 49ers. By the end of the 2014 season, Aaron Donald was already a star.
He recorded 47 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, and 9 sacks. Thus, he became the Los Angeles Rams’ treasured possession. He was also among the five newbies that were chosen to the 2015 Pro Bowl. To crown it all, he earned the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Additionally, he was named to the NFL All-Rookie team.
He Was A Collegiate Star Before He Was Drafted To Join NFL
Before the draft, Aaron Donald was named among the most productive defensive tackles in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). He also recorded 59 tackles and 4 forced fumbles alongside 11 sacks. Apart from this, he secured the ACC Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in college.
Aaron Donald was really an outstanding collegiate star and made a name for himself. He received the Rotary Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy. He was also named the Bronko Nagurski award winner as well as the Chuck Bednarik Award winner.
He Has Spent 8 Seasons In The NFL So Far
Since the draft selection in 2014, Aaron Donald has spent eight seasons in the NFL. In fact, his entire career as an American professional footballer has been spent as a defensive tackle for the Los Angeles Rams.
After his first four years contract with the Rams expired in 2018, he got a contract extension. In August 2018, he signed a 6-year contract with the same team which is meant to run until 2024. The contract is worth $135 million with $87 million guaranteed. This made him the highest-paid NFL defensive player of all time.
However, the record was broken within 24 hours by Khalil Mack after he signed a $141 million deal with the Chicago Bears. Though the deal with Aaron Donald is supposed to span until 2024, the Rams couldn’t wait for the expiration. In 2022, the team renegotiated the 2018 deal extension with Aaron, adding 40 million dollars to the initial $135 million in the six-year deal.
Consequently, he now earns more than $30 million in a season, becoming the first non-quarterback to do so.
Aaron Donald Is Now An Award-Winning Defensive Tackle
Apart from the wins in his first season with the Los Angeles Rams, he went further to help the team to several trophies. In the 2015 season, he earned the defensive player of the week in the first and fourteenth weeks. He went on to win this award six more times, once in 2016, 2019, 2020, and 2021 seasons, and twice in the 2018 season.
Additionally, he secured the AP NFL defensive player of the year thrice in 2017, 2018, and 2020 seasons. He came out twice as the award winner of the Sporting News NFL player of the year in the 2018 and 2020 seasons.
From 2015 through 2018 seasons and in the 2020 season, he was named Pro Football Focus Defensive Player of the Year. Aside from these, he is a seven-times First Team All-Pro Selection. He also made it to the Pro Bowl Selection nine times.
In addition, he ranked first in the NFL Top 100 players in 2019. He came second place in the 2021 and 2022 editions. Also, he came seventh and third in 2020 and 2018 respectively.
Among his numerous wins, he also had his not-so-good moments. In 2018, he and his teammates were on the losing end in the 2018 Super Bowl Championship. They lost their final game against the New England Patriots team led by the inspirational Tom Brady at the time.
However, despite these failures and setbacks, Aaron Donald is still considered one of the best defensive tackle in the Los Angeles Rams’ history.
Did Los Angeles Rams Let Aaron Donald Go?
No, Aaron Donald is Los Angeles Rams’ prized possession and they won’t just let him go. Though he opted to retire, his retirement wasn’t approved. The defensive tackle had decided to call time on his football career with the Rams once he won the Superbowl. And in February 2022, the Rams ended the season perfectly by winning the Superbowl LVI.
During the off-season in May 2022, the defensive tackle submitted his retirement letter to the Rams but the Rams did not send the letter to the NFL. Instead, they sought to keep him with the contract re-negotiation in June 2022. As a result, they got an extra three-year deal with the defensive tackle. So, Aaron Donald did not retire.
However, after two seasons, he has the option to either complete the last contract year or retire. It has been reported that Aaron Donald only returned to the team because of Sean McVay, the head coach, and he confirmed that. According to the Ram’s legend, he wouldn’t have returned if McVay did not make a different decision concerning his future with the Rams. So, if McVay had retired, Donald would have insisted on his retirement too.
