May 30, 2022 03:38PM
Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal
lPosted by Charean Williams on May 30, 2022, 7:44 PM EDT

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Aaron Donald has done it all. He has three defesnive player of the year awards, eight Pro Bowls, seven All-Pros, an All-Decade honor, 98 career sacks and now a Super Bowl ring.

The Rams defensive lineman has joined Lawrence Taylor in the conversation for the greatest defensive player in history, and he will enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame five years after his retirement.

Donald just turned 31, but he said he could walk away after eight seasons without playing another down and be satisfied.

While appearing on Brandon Marshall’s “I Am Athlete” podcast, Donald said four times he is “at peace” with his career.

Donald is not participating in the team’s voluntary organized team activities as he seeks a new contract, having outplayed the six-year, $125 million deal he signed in 2018.

“It ain’t about the money, but it’s a business at the end of the day,” Donald said. “That’s what you’ve got to see For me, it’s about winning. I don’t want to play football if I can’t win anyway, so I feel like if I got a real opportunity to win another Super Bowl, then it makes sense to play. But again, it’s still a business. We’ve got to handle the business side of things, and if that wasn’t to get handled then, you know, it is what it is type of situation. I’ll be fine regardless.

“But me talking about retirement, that was happening way before we won a Super Bowl. I’ve been saying that since I got into the league that I was going to play eight years and be done. That’s just what I’ve been saying. It just came out and then everybody think that, ‘oh, he said if he wins a Super Bowl he’s going to retire.’ Nah, I got teammates, coaches, my family who know about this. I said I’m going to play eight years, and I’m going to probably be done playing football. But winning a Super Bowl you get kind of a little addicted to it. I ain’t going to lie. I want to feel that again. That experience is like none other. If I was to play, it’s just to win another Super Bowl, but at the end of the day, it’s still a business and it got to make sense to me and my family.”

Donald is scheduled to make $14.25 million in 2022, which ranks 102nd in the NFL, per spotrac.com. His avearge of $22.5 million ranks 27th.

Donald admits the sides “probably (will) figure it out,” but he said he won’t be mad if they don’t.

“I don’t need to play football to be fine. I’m fine,” Donald said. “I was blessed to play this game, to make the money I made, the accomplishments I made in eight years is, like, I’m complete. If I can win another one, that’s great. But if not, I’m at peace.”

Donald told NBC Sports studio analyst Rodney Harrison before Super Bowl LVI that he would consider retiring if the Rams won. It sounds as if Donald will consider retiring if he doesn’t get a new deal, and the Rams surely will do what they have to do to convince him to keep playing.

Money, after all, talks.



#HelmetHornsMatter

“Well, the color is good, I like the metallic blue,” Youngblood recently said while laughing, via NFL Journal. “The horn is terrible. It looks like a ‘C.’ When I first saw it on the logo I honestly thought it was a Charger logo.

“Now when I see it on the helmet, it just isn’t a ram horn. There is no distinct curl like a mature ram horn. I don’t know how the Rams could get that wrong. That is your symbol and it has been for what? Seventy years or more? Longer than I have been alive? It’s just not us, it’s not the Rams.”---Mr. Ram Jack Youngblood


SubjectAuthorViewsPosted

  Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

Ramsdude552May 30, 2022 03:38PM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

SoCalRAMatic294May 30, 2022 04:13PM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

CROMWELL21360May 30, 2022 04:38PM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

BerendsenRam168May 30, 2022 04:42PM

  Teams also try to set it up so end of contract isn't a big cap hit

NewMexicoRam155May 30, 2022 05:53PM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

Classicalwit272May 30, 2022 07:59PM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

Islander Ram306May 30, 2022 10:27PM

  I'm in favor of players renegotiating whenever they can

Ram_Ruler205May 31, 2022 04:56AM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

RustyRay239May 31, 2022 11:48AM

  Seems like conflicting logic

Atlantic Ram313May 30, 2022 07:18PM

  Re: Seems like conflicting logic

SoCalRAMatic143May 30, 2022 07:59PM

  Would he really walk away from $120 million if he could get $150 million?

RockRam166May 31, 2022 01:56AM

  Negotiating Tactic

David Deacon257May 31, 2022 05:17AM

  AD isn’t gonna retire anytime soon, trust me…

Rams43154May 31, 2022 05:40AM

  Also...

ramBRO137May 31, 2022 06:33AM

  Re: AD isn’t gonna retire anytime soon, trust me…

Ramstien130May 31, 2022 07:00AM

  Got to tone down the rhetoric

promomasterj130May 31, 2022 10:35AM

  Well..... You have to wonder how much of this is his Agent.

Ramgator116May 31, 2022 11:01AM

  Re: Got to tone down the rhetoric

ramBRO117May 31, 2022 11:23AM

  Re: Got to tone down the rhetoric

Ramstien115May 31, 2022 11:34AM

  Re: Got to tone down the rhetoric

Ramstien177May 31, 2022 11:46AM

  So Aaron Donald is a money grubber like a woman?

promomasterj99May 31, 2022 12:28PM

  The #1 reason AD won’t retire this year. (Article)

Rams43220May 31, 2022 06:58AM

  Florio and Simms discuss the Donald situation

NewMexicoRam137May 31, 2022 07:59AM

  Article: Aaron Donald still weighing retirement, would be 'at peace' without football

BerendsenRam296May 31, 2022 08:25AM

  Best possible outcome for the Rams...

L.A.Rams390May 31, 2022 08:49AM

  Personally, my give a damn has a crack and is about to bust.

Ramgator209May 31, 2022 11:13AM

  Re: Personally, my give a damn has a crack and is about to bust.

Ramstien115May 31, 2022 12:01PM

  Re: Aaron Donald is “at peace” with his career if he doesn’t get a new deal

Ramkind248May 31, 2022 12:07PM

  Right on man!

promomasterj167May 31, 2022 12:30PM

  I'm starting to hope he gets traded to the Whiners...

DaJudge159May 31, 2022 12:38PM

  Yes!

promomasterj137May 31, 2022 12:42PM

  Doesn't change the fact that he IS under contract. He needs to honor it.

Ramgator113May 31, 2022 03:38PM