Aaron Donald is retiring from the NFL after a standout career with the Rams

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Aaron Donald spent 10 years flattening quarterbacks, crushing ball carriers, fighting constant double-teams and customarily destroying NFL offenses. He was tenacious, reliable and endlessly resourceful, leading the Los Angeles Rams to a Super Bowl championship.

On Friday, Donald decided that a decade of dominance was enough.

The most talented defensive lineman of his generation has retired after an illustrious 10-year career.

The three-time AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year made his slightly surprising announcement on social media. He doesn’t plan a retirement news conference or any public farewell, but his impact on the Rams and the NFL is already indelible.

Donald, 32, has spent his entire career with the Rams, who chosen him from Pitt in the first round of the draft in 2014. The Pittsburgh native was named to 10 Pro Bowl first teams and eight All-Pro first teams and won the award as the league’s top defensive player in 2017, 2018 and 2020.

“Throughout my entire career, I have given everything to football, both mentally and physically. I dedicated 365 days a year to becoming the best possible player I could be,” Donald said in a statement. “I respected this game like no other and I’m blessed to complete my NFL career with the same team that drafted me. Not many individuals get drafted into a team, win a world championship with it, and retire with it. I do not and won’t take it with no consideration.”

Although Donald was smaller than many top defensive players, he used his incredible athleticism and playmaking ability to wreak havoc on offense throughout his career. He was a cornerstone of each Rams defense during his tenure, drawing regular double teams from his teammates and still racking up a career-high 111 sacks, which ranks third in the NFL amongst lively players.

After winning the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award in 2014, Donald reached the height of his fame after relocating the Rams franchise from St. Louis back to Los Angeles in 2016. In 2018, he had a career-high 20 1/2 sacks en path to his first Super Bowl appearance under coach Sean McVay.

He went on to play a major role in the Rams’ Super Bowl victory three years later, with his most famous performance being the pressure that forced Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow to make an incomplete throw to linebacker on the last play of the Bengals’ victory in Los Angeles by 23: 20 in the game against Los Angeles. Super Bowl 56.

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After that break, Donald provided one other defining moment in the Rams’ championship season by taking off his helmet, pointing to his ring finger and shouting, “Call me!” His joyful shirtless ride on a double-decker bus during the Rams’ victory parade in Los Angeles is also an iconic moment in the team’s history.

“Great players in our league uplift those around them, and Aaron has led the way for our team for as long as I have been with the Rams,” McVay said in a statement. “He is an elite competitor, someone who leads by example in a way that is authentic to himself, and an exceptional teammate who inspires everyone around him to be the best version of themselves.”

Lawrence Taylor and JJ Watt are the only remaining players to win the Defensive Player of the Year award 3 times. Only John Randle (137 1/2) has recorded more defensive sacks than Donald since sacks became an official statistic in 1982.

Although he spent most of his time away from football quietly living with his wife and 4 children, Donald’s obvious greatness and McVay’s coaching acumen are two of the most vital aspects in the Rams’ rise in the Los Angeles sports hierarchy since the team returned home. During McVay’s seven years with Donald, the Rams racked up six winning seasons, five playoff berths, three NFC West titles, two Super Bowl appearances and a ring, while winning over many skeptical fans in the nation’s second-largest market.

Under the terms of a contract renegotiated almost two years ago, Donald was expected to earn greater than $34 million this season. Although Donald has reportedly been privately flirting with retirement over the past two seasons, the Rams and Donald haven’t publicly acknowledged that his departure is a real possibility.

But in the last two months, Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator Raheem Morris left to grow to be head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, and line of defense coach Eric Henderson left for a similar job in Southern California. Henderson and Donald are close friends.

“We are very grateful for Aaron’s commitment to greatness and for leading our franchise on and off the field for the past decade,” Rams owner Stan Kroenke said. “He left his mark on generations of soccer fans, and his achievements, combined with his work ethic and passion, continue to inspire his teammates, coaches and athletes around the world. It is an honor to witness one of the greatest players of all time, and we are proud that Aaron Donald will forever be a part of NFL history as a member of the Rams.”

Donald’s off-season training program was extremely demanding, but he spoke of his love for it due to the work ethic instilled in him by his father, who transformed Donald from a self-proclaimed “lazy little kid” into a dynamo. Donald returned home to Pittsburgh during the Rams’ offseason, understanding at Pitt’s Aaron Donald Football Performance Center – made possible by a seven-figure donation to his school.

Donald had 543 tackles in his career, including 176 for loss and 24 forced fumbles. In 11 career postseason games, he has 34 tackles and 6 sacks.

Donald was also incredibly durable, missing only six games because of injury in his 10-year career – all late in the 2022 season, when the Rams were already out of the playoffs.

“He had so much to say,” said defenseman Bobby Wagner, Donald’s 2022 teammate. “The most vital thing was watching him work, watching him practice. Few D-line players have truly put in the work each in the film room and on the field. He could have achieved a lot in his career, he had an incredible career and I can not wait to see what the future holds for him. Great man. Amazing player. One of the biggest.”

There is just one player left on the Rams’ squad, who also played for St. Louis: Rob Havenstein, who is still the Rams’ starting right fielder.