Aaron Donald facing $405K fine for skipping Rams' preseason opener
Cameron DaSilva
[
theramswire.usatoday.com]
Thursday night’s preseason opener was an ugly one for the Los Angeles Rams as they were wiped by the Baltimore Ravens, 33-7. The offense was almost non-existent, the defense was gashed on the ground for 140 yards and they were flagged 11 times for 87 yards.
Of course, hardly any of the starters actually played meaningful time, including Aaron Donald, who’s continued to hold out for a new contract. While he can be fined $30,000 per day for missing training camp – it’s unclear if the Rams will impose that penalty – his bank account could be drained even more for missing last night’s game.
According to ProFootballTalk, Donald can be fined $405,000 for skipping the team’s preseason opener, the equivalent to that of one game check. So essentially, it’s financially the same as missing a regular season game.
This only applies to players on the fifth-year option of their rookie contracts, which obviously includes Donald and his $6.9 million base salary. On the bright side, daily fines are $10,000 less than typical training camp penalties for players not on the fifth-year option.
Again, the Rams can choose not to slap Donald with that fine, though it’s unknown how they’ll handle it. None of this will matter if Donald signs a long-term deal soon, which will likely make him the highest-paid defensive player in league history.
