Retired DT Aaron Donald Mulling Return?

The Rams added an all-time great defender when they acquired pass rusher extraordinaire Myles Garrett from the Browns on Monday. Garrett may not be the last future Hall of Famer to join the Rams’ defense before the upcoming season. On the heels of the Garrett trade, it appears retired Ram Aaron Donald is mulling a comeback.

When ESPN’s Pat McAfee contacted Donald via text about a potential return in the wake of the Garrett blockbuster, the 35-year-old admitted, “It for sure got me thinking.” Donald added that he’s “gotta see if that fire can light back up” after two full years out of the NFL.

With the Rams still based in St. Louis at the time, they spent the 13th overall pick in the 2014 draft on Donald. It quickly became one of the wisest decisions in franchise history, as Donald turned into one of the most dominant defensive tackles in the history of the sport. He earned Pro Bowl honors in all 10 of his seasons, picked up eight first-team All-Pro selections (tied with Reggie White and Bruce Smith for most among D-linemen) and won the Defensive Player of the Year three times. Donald was also a major contributor on the Rams’ most recent Super Bowl-winning team in 2021.

The Rams were already atop the list of Super Bowl favorites for the upcoming campaign before they took a home run swing on Garrett. Although the trade cost them standout edge defender Jared Verse and three picks, including a 2027 first-rounder, they landed a player who set the single-season sack record (23) and won DPOY for the second time in 2025. Their odds of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy next February would only seem to improve with Donald, a well-known workout warrior who has stayed in shape in his post-playing days. With 111 sacks on his resume, he would join the likes of Garrett, Byron Young, Kobie Turner, Braden Fiske and Poona Ford to form a terrifying group up front.

When Donald walked away from the game in March 2024, there was one season left on the three-year, $95MM extension he signed in 2022. His retirement forced the Rams to spread $33MM in dead money over the previous two seasons ($24MM in 2024 and $9MM in ’25). Donald is off the team’s books now, but that will change if he makes the bombshell decision to return. The Rams have approximately $16.34MM in spending room, according to OverTheCap.