Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald is one of the most elite defensive linemen in the NFL, and with his 10th Pro Bowl he will join Reggie White (13) and Bruce Smith (11) as the only defensive linemen with 10 Pro Bowl selections since 1970.
Donald has eight sacks this season as an interior defensive lineman, which is the lowest he’s had since 2016 in seasons where he played in 16 games. Six out of Donald’s 10 years as a Ram have seen him attain double-digit sack numbers. Last year Donald didn’t reach the mark because he only played 11 games, and the other three times he came up short by just one or two sacks.
Donald has two Defensive Player of the Year Awards, and has a case to be one of the greatest defensive players to ever play the game. Donald’s 111 sacks are a long way behind Reggie White’s 198 sacks, but Donald has played in nearly 100 less games than White.
Donald’s impact goes beyond sacking the quarterback, especially as an interior defensive lineman. His ability to impact the game and eat multiple blockers is something that is hard to quantify.
It’s Aaron Donald’s birthday so here are some highlights of him being an absolute animal on the field pic.twitter.com/KlW0UcKYbu
— Going Deep (@goingdeep) May 23, 2020
This is a year’s worth of highlights for most players. It’s one game of work for Aaron Donald — the league’s best player.
— Sosa Kremenjas (@QBsMVP) December 14, 2021
New England Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia, who had to game plan against Donald in the Super Bowl, best illustrates Donald’s impact in an article from Sports Illustrated.
“You can see it on their faces,” said Scarnecchia, about his Patriots offensive line stopping Donald in the Super Bowl. “O.K., what are we going to do here? How are we going to get this done?”
“You can push the protection to his side, minimize the spacing he has to deal with, call runs toward him to allow two guys to maintain control of him.
“But there’s times you [have to leave him single blocked]. And you just say, ‘Oh, man. Come on, left guard.’ You have to come through now. And you have to do everything exactly right. You have to be really perfect.”