Aaron Donald hinted at retirement this offseason before agreeing to a contract that made him the highest paid non-QB in NFL history.
Donald, fresh off of a Super Bowl win with the Los Angeles Rams, said he was at peace with his career. With very few personal and team accolades left to accomplish, the star defensive end had pretty much done it all.
However. there appears to have at least one goal left for Donald before he calls it a career.
Completing his NFL bingo card.
Donald has played the opposing 31 NFL teams at least once in his career. Among the 31 teams, Donald has wins against 28 of them. The only teams that he has not defeated to date are the Pittsburgh Steelers (0-2), Miami Dolphins (0-2) and the Buffalo Bills (0-2).
Donald won’t see the Steelers or Dolphins this season, but he has a chance to pick up his first win over Buffalo in Week 1 with the Bills coming to SoFi Stadium.
The defensive tackle and team fell short against Buffalo in 2016 and 2020. The latter of those two matchups still leaves a bitter taste in Donald’s mouth.
“I remember it being a game that we started off a little slow, but we found a way to fight back and get into the game,” Donald told Inside Rams Camp. “In my opinion, there were some calls that were made that shouldn’t have been made. We could have pulled that off, but we didn’t. Obviously that’s the past, but coming into this year the main goal is to find a way to win a game definitely being the first game of the season back in SoFi with a great opponent.”
The Rams were down 28-3 in the 2020 contest before mounting a comeback that saw them take the lead in the fourth quarter. Donald was dominant recording two sacks, one forced fumble and fumble recovery, but the Bills were able to pull out a last second win on a touchdown pass from Josh Allen to Tyler Kroft.
One of the calls that Donald likely believed shouldn’t have been made involved a defensive pass interference call on a 4th and 8 play against Gabe Davis. The penalty gave Allen and the offense a fresh set of downs from the Rams’ three yard line. Buffalo scored on the next play to regain the lead. The Bills would win 35-32.
Of course, Donald did not mention a controversial call that allowed the Rams to get back into the game in the first place. Up 28-10, Allen threw a long pass to Kroft. Kroft caught the ball uncontested. On his way to the ground,landed on the ground, John Johnson III put his arms around the ball. Usually a contested catch goes to the offensive player, but it was ruled an interception and upheld despite a challenge. The Rams would score a touchdown just three plays later to cut into Buffalo’s lead at the time.
To get his first win over Buffalo, Donald and the Rams defense will have to stop an explosive offense led by Josh Allen. Donald had nothing but praise for Allen, calling him a futuristic version of a future Hall of Fame quarterback.
“He’s a big guy,” Donald told the Inside Rams Camp hosts. “He’s a tough guy. He’s athletic. In my opinion, he’s like a futuristic Big Ben (Roethlisberger). A little bit more athletic, can move a little bit better. But he’s a guy that ain’t gonna go down easy so you gotta come with your big boy pads when you get to wrap him up.”
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