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<\/p>\n
Donald, who retired following the 2023\/24 season after a decade with the Rams organisation, has remained away from the game despite finishing his career with 111 sacks and a Super Bowl ring.<\/p>\n
Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show, ESPN insider Adam Schefter revealed the workout was far more than a casual visit.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told the team that he wanted to go there, work out, see how he felt, see how he reacted, see everything that went along with being back in pads on the football field, and see how it made him feel,\u201d Schefter said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, I don\u2019t know what he told them after he went through those workouts at the facility, but I really think it was just a trial method to see how his whole body reacted, how his mind reacted to being back out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Schefter admitted he did not know the outcome of Donald\u2019s conversations with the Rams following the workout but believes the mere fact the future Hall of Famer is considering a return is significant.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an unbelievably attractive arrangement for him. It\u2019s just a question of whether he wants to go through and do it,\u201d Schefter said.<\/p>\n
(FILES) Aaron Donald #99 of the Los Angeles Rams celebrates during the second half against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on September 10, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. Three-times NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Donald announced on March 15, 2024, that he was retiring from the sport after ten seasons. The Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle, an eight-time All Pro selection won the Super Bowl with the Rams in the 2021 season. (Photo by Steph Chambers \/ GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA \/ AFP)Source: AFP<\/p>\n
\u201cMy guess is in the end that he will, just a guess, because obviously he\u2019s thinking hard about it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a lot of people that want him back there. He has to make the decision ultimately, but I would think it\u2019s got to be awfully enticing for him to come back and play this year when the Super Bowl will be in LA.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust the thought of him even thinking about it tells me it\u2019s going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adding further fuel to the speculation is the Rams\u2019 aggressive offseason.<\/p>\n
Los Angeles has already acquired two-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, creating the possibility of one of the most feared defensive pairings the NFL has ever seen should Donald decide to return.<\/p>\n
Garrett also added to the excitement by posting a photo on Instagram of a signed Donald jersey from when the pair met in 2019.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Rams wide receiver Davante Adams shared a throwback image of himself shaking hands with Donald, prompting even more discussion across social media.<\/p>\n
McAfee revealed he had personally reached out to Donald after Garrett\u2019s arrival in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
\u201cI texted Aaron Donald after the Myles Garrett thing and asked him,\u201d McAfee said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe response was very positive, but also, \u2018Let me see if I still got it.\u2019 After two years out, he was kind of questioning himself.\u201d<\/p>\n
McAfee believes Donald\u2019s time away from the game is the biggest obstacle standing between the former superstar and an NFL comeback.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many years has he been out? Two? Two full years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, that\u2019s a long time. It is a long time, but he is a freak of nature. The best defensive player I\u2019ve ever seen play the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he does come back, he\u2019ll see looks that he didn\u2019t see his entire career with having Myles Garrett on that edge. I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll see less double teams.\u201d<\/p>\n
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 13: Head coach Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams reacts with Aaron Donald #99 during the second half of Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium on February 13, 2022 in Inglewood, California. The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20. Kevin C. Cox\/Getty Images\/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==Source: AFP<\/p>\n
Donald retired at the age of 32 after 10 seasons, saying at the time he felt there was \u201cnothing left\u201d for him to accomplish.A comeback would also carry significant interest for Australian fans.<\/p>\n
The Rams are set to make history in 2026 when they become the designated home team for the NFL\u2019s first-ever regular-season game in Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday, 11 September.<\/p>\n
Now, with the Super Bowl set to be played in Los Angeles, reigning MVP Matthew Stafford leading the offence and Garrett already in place, the circumstances may be perfectly aligned for one of the most remarkable comeback stories in recent NFL history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It was a sight that sent the NFL world into overdrive. Just under two years after retiring from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":799088,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[559],"tags":[64,63,593,85],"class_list":["post-799087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nfl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=799087"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799087\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/799088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=799087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=799087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=799087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}