Rodney Harrison dropped a massive piece of news just before kickoff of Super Bowl LVI, saying Aaron Donald would strongly consider retiring if the Rams beat the Bengals. Well, the Rams did beat Cincinnati, 23-20, raising questions about whether Donald really is prepared to call it a career.
After the game, he was asked about the possibility of walking away from football, but he sidestepped those questions – both during his postgame press conference and on the field immediately following the win.
“I’m just in the moment right now,” Donald said. “I’m enjoying this with my family. I got my kid. I promised my daughter this when she was 5 years old to play in the confetti. She got to do that today. I’m just in the moment right now. I’m gonna enjoy this with my teammates, with my family and I’m just gonna be in the moment and enjoy this today – a couple days, how about that? So, it’s a blessing.”
Aaron Donald on the reports he may retire if the Rams win today, “I’m just on the moment… I’m going to enjoy this with my teammates and my family for a couple days, how about that?”@usatodaynfl pic.twitter.com/kONcYnRpzP
— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) February 14, 2022
If he really wanted to put talk about his potential retirement to rest, he could’ve simply said he’d be back in 2022. He didn’t, which will only add to the speculation in the coming months.
Donald has accomplished everything he hoped to, winning Defensive Player of the Year three times, earning seven All-Pro selections and now securing his first Super Bowl ring. If he retired tomorrow, he’d still be a first-ballot Hall of Famer and go down as possibly the best defensive lineman in NFL history.
He’s got nothing left to prove, which is why he really might walk away despite being in his prime.
