One of the biggest challenges any team faces when going against the Los Angeles Rams is figuring out how to slow down Aaron Donald.
A 7-time All-Pro, 8-time Pro Bowler and 3-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Donald has been one of the league’s most dominant forces for a long time. He causes problems for opposing offenses on a weekly basis, and this week, he’s the Kansas City Chiefs’ problem to deal with.
Speaking to media members earlier this week, Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy offered a unique comparison and some thoughts on what makes Donald so great.
“You know what, I think all his life when people telling him what he can’t and cannot do, he should not be playing this particular position, I think all that has just been motivating for him,” Bieniemy said of Donald. “One thing I have to admit, I’m a huge fan. I had an opportunity to watch him when he was at the University of Pittsburgh. Just talking about the evolution of him, you’re talking about a special player that doesn’t take anything for granted. I mean, he’s him. He’s a captain of the short man’s club. He finds ways to make plays in critical moments. We were joking about him last night saying, ‘He’s the Steph Curry of football.’ Because Steph Curry makes the threes when needed and here he is making the sack when needed. We don’t want him making that critical sack against us, obviously, nut the guy is a tremendous football player. . .”
Coming off of a Super Bowl LVI, the Rams have dealt with a host of injuries and problems this season. No matter their strife on the gridiron, the Chiefs are intent on looking beyond their 3-7 record. Patrick Mahomes knows just how dangerous Donald and the rest of the Rams’ defense can be. In their lone game against each other back in 2018, Donald got the best of Mahomes.
“Oh yeah, they have a ton of talent,” Mahomes said. “They’re still a great defense. I watched them in all the games they’ve had this year and they’ve done a great job. They have playmakers everywhere. Obviously 99 (Rams DT Aaron Donald), he’s strip-sacked me twice last — when we played them — so we got to make sure we account for him every single time that he’s on the field which is like every play.”
One of the players who will be tasked with accounting for Donald is Chiefs second-year RG Trey Smith, who has emerged as one of the best young interior offensive linemen in the game this season. On Wednesday, Smith spoke about going up against Donald and what it’s going to take for him to find success.
“(I) just have to be technically sound at the end of the day,” Smith said. “He’s a great competitor, a great player and when you have a great player you’ve got to be on your ‘A’ game. Ultimately, (I’ve) just got to work my technique and do what I do best.”
Keeping Donald at bay will prove to be a challenging task, but it’s clear that the Chiefs aren’t going shy away from that challenge in Week 12.
