All signs continue to point to a potential return to the Rams by defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who retired after the 2023 season.
Everyone on the outside is thinking about what it would mean for the team. Folks on the inside are thinking about it, too.
“Obviously, I’d be really excited about that,” defensive coordinator Chris Shula told reporters on Wednesday regarding the possibility of Donald coming back. “You’re getting one of the best players of all time. I’ve had a great history with him. I was here in ’17, coaching other positions with him. I know what a great guy he is, what a hard worker he is, and what he would mean to this defense. But at the same time, we’re going to coach the guys who are here and if he decides to come back, that’d be great.”
Donald took the next step earlier this week, with a “tryout” during (we’re told) a day off for players at training camp. Shula wasn’t present for the session that was far less about evaluating Donald and much more about Donald seeing how he felt — with the goal of finding out if he can get back to being the great player he was.
What made him so great?
“I think it’s when you have the extreme talent and you have the work ethic to match, and the mentality to be great every single day,” Shula said. “When you put all that together, that’s what you get. You get one of the greatest of all time.”
It has Shula very much aware of potentially pairing Donald with Myles Garrett.
“I think I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it a little bit,” Shula said. “You’re anticipating, but at the same time, we’re putting it in the core of our defense right now. We’re building our defense step by step. If he decides to come, whenever that is, that’s not going to affect exactly how we’re doing it right now.”
If he returns, it will affect everything. Most importantly, it will throw opposing offenses for a loop as they try to figure out how to deploy blockers to slow down two of the all-time best defensive players to ever put on a helmet.
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