It’s been nearly a decade since the Los Angeles Rams took Aaron Donald no. 13 overall and the franchise has been better off for it.
Donald has been widely regarded as the best defensive player in the NFL and immediately made an impact as a rookie, being named Defensive Rookie of the Year and earning a Pro Bowl nod. Since then, the star defensive tackle has racked up three Defensive Player of the Year awards, seven First-team All-Pro nods, eight more Pro Bowl nominations and ultimately a Super Bowl ring.
Analysts knew Donald would be an impact player at the league level during the draft process, but there were some unfounded concerns over his size. However, that didn’t deter the Rams from picking him although in an appearance on ‘The Season with Peter Schrager’, Brad Holmes revealed that the team received some calls about that pick:
“The sights were set on Aaron Donald,” Holmes said of the Rams’ target at No. 13 overall. “And I’ll never forget we got to that pick and a team called and they offered a pretty enticing trade offer. And I remember Jeff (Fisher) and Les (Snead) were like, ‘Absolutely not. We’re picking this guy and that’s just it.’… And I’ll never forget in that draft meeting, our assistant general manager, Ray Agnew, he was the one that really like – in that draft meeting leading up to that draft, because a lot of people were saying because of his size, he was going to be sub-rush, specialized package nickel-sub-rush guy. And I’ll never forget, Ray Agnew was like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, no, no. He’s every-down. It’s no specialized nothing. And he said it with the most passion.”
Every year there’s a prospect that team executives fall in love with and take no matter what, and fortunately the Rams were smart enough to stick with their plan to take Donald. Normally, teams maneuvering up that high in the first round will give up hauls, but there were no amount of picks that could’ve come close to the value that Donald possessed.
Los Angeles is lucky they landed Donald and are counting on him to lead the team back to its winning ways.
Von Miller lists Aaron Donald in his top-5 trash talkers
It’s hard not to focus on Donald when he’s on the field as he seemingly makes an impact on every snap. He’s even more vicious when opponents try to trash talk him as he relishes the extra motivation.
When a player gets Donald going, he’s happy to dish it back which is why Von Miller listed him in his top five trash talkers in the NFL.
