Monday night’s season opener was an embarrassing showing all around for the Los Angeles Rams and arguably the low point of the game came in the fourth quarter when star defensive tackle Aaron Donald was ejected.
After a skirmish broke out, Donald rushed in and ripped off 49ers wide receiver Quinton Patton’s helmet drawing an unneccessary roughness flag. Donald would then make inadvertent contact with an official, drawing an immediate ejection.
The good news for Donald is that he won’t be suspended for the Rams’ next game, but he was fined more than $20,000 for his actions on Monday night according to Ian Rapaport of NFL Network:
#Rams DT Aaron Donald was fined twice while getting ejected: $9,115 for unnecessary roughness and $12,154 for unsportsmanlike conduct.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 16, 2016
The visual of Donald slamming his helmet after the ejection was the ideal symbol for the Rams showing in the season opener, but he and the rest of the team can’t afford to dwell on that for long as the Seattle Seahawks are in town for the first home opener in Los Angeles since 1994.
Donald and the rest of the Rams defensive line was vital in their victory over Seattle last season so he will need to be firing on all cylinders to replicate that success.
Running back Todd Gurley has basically guaranteed a win for the Rams on Sunday so the rest of the team will have to step up and make Gurley’s words come true.
