Because Donald may not be the future
at all, and it's very possible he has just two more years as a Ram. They can tag him twice in order to keep him for 4 years but if the prospect of getting a long term deal done breaks down on the first tag tagging him twice is unlikely.
Donald signed a 5 year deal for less than 11MIL didn't he? He will get a signing bonus triple that or more and a contract over 100MIL with about 75MIL guaranteed in a couple of years as a free agent. I'm sure he and his agent are looking down that road right now because everyone knows if he keeps playing like he has been he is going to find himself holding the largest contract ever given to a defensive player.
He said this earlier in the year after some DLmen had signed some large azz deals:
“I’m just going to go out there and do my job,” Donald said. “All the business parts off the field will happen when they happen. But right now, my main focus is not letting that affect what I’m doing on the football field and slow me down. I’m just playing football and everything will pay off in the long run.”To me that sound like a guy who thinks his smart play is going to free agency. Now whether or not the Rams can pay him and keep him remains to be seen but we can't assume Donald is the future. They may be drafting his position in a year or two.
