Of all the challenges New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is worried about going into Super Bowl LIII, finding a way to contain Aaron Donald may prove to be the most daunting.
Donald has been the single most destructive force in the 2018 NFL season. His prowess as both a pass-rusher and run-stopper is clearly second to none.
If the Patriots are going to control the clock as they did in the AFC Championship Game, they will need to find a way to make sure Donald is not wreaking havoc in the backfield. However, Belichick realizes that may be much easier said than done.
Belichick recently admitted that Donald is essentially unblockable at this point in his career, according to Patriots:
“Everything. He’s pretty much unblockable.”
This is certainly some high praise coming from Belichick considering he also coached Lawrence Taylor, who is regarded as the greatest defensive player of all time. However, it is safe to say that there is plenty of truth to his comments.
Donald has been a one-man wrecking crew this season. Despite playing primarily on the interior, he still came just 2.5 sacks shy of breaking Michael Strahan’s record.
Perhaps even more impressive is that Donald managed to do this while being double-teamed at an exponentially higher rate than any other player in the league. However, it is clear that this did not do much to contain him.
Considering Donald’s dominance against every type of look this season, Belichick knows full well he will be hard-pressed to find a way to do so himself. Although trying to find a way to contain the reigning Defensive Player of the Year will be a tall task, if there is any coach that can do it, it is Belichick.
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