The Los Angeles Rams may be the defending Super Bowl champions, but the 2022 season will represent an arduous task as they look to climb back up the mountain.
The Rams have the talent and coaching to beat any team, but their Achilles heel has been their NFC West rivals the San Francisco 49ers. Los Angeles has been swept by San Francisco in three consecutive regular seasons, though the Rams finally got their revenge when they beat the 49ers in the NFC Championship to punch their ticket to Super Bowl LVI.
At the forefront of their heated games is Aaron Donald, who always seems to be in some sort of skirmish on the field. To add more fuel to the fire, Donald didn’t hold back when asked about the two teams’ rivalry, via Andrew Siciliano of NFL Network:
“I don’t like the Niners at all. They don’t like us.”
“No love at all towards them guys. I really dislike them.”
One more from @AaronDonald97, stating the obvious.
❓from @MJD @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/ve5PMor32k
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) July 31, 2022
San Francisco has found ways to frustrate Donald in a manner that few teams have with their play in the trenches as well as their downhill rushing attack. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has devised ways to neutralize Donald’s pass rushing which often leaves the Rams defense scrambling for answers.
L.A. and San Francisco are well-acquainted with each other by now and both teams project to be NFC contenders again, though the change in 49er quarterbacks could be the wild card when they eventually face off. Donald looked happier than usual when taking down the 49ers in the playoffs but this time, he’s probably hoping to finally snap their regular season woes against them as well.
