Over the last five years or so, Aaron Donald has gone from being the best defensive tackle currently in the NFL to potentially earning the title as the best defensive tackle ever. He’s been that good over the course of his career, earning three Defensive Player of the Year awards and being selected as a first-team All-Pro seven times in eight seasons.
Michael Strahan doesn’t have much doubt that Donald truly is the best interior defensive lineman in league history. On an episode of the I AM ATHLETE podcast, Strahan said he’s the best he’s ever seen at that position.
“Aaron Donald, he’s probably the best defensive tackle I’ve seen,” Strahan said before being asked to say it again. “Aaron Donald is probably the best interior defensive lineman ever in the history of the game of football. Ever in the history (of the league). Howie Long and I sit there and watch that cat, nobody can touch that dude. Nobody. That dude is unbelievable.”
Brandon Marshall chimed in by mentioning Warren Sapp.
“Warren Sapp was close,” Marshall said.
Strahan wasn’t having it.
“That dude is unbelievable,” Strahan repeated. “Don’t insult Aaron Donald. Don’t insult Aaron Donald, all right?”
Donald is one sack away from reaching 100 for his career, and he’s only been in the NFL for eight seasons. He’s good for double-digit sacks every year, no matter how many times he’s double-teamed.
He also holds the single-season record for sacks by a defensive tackle with 20.5 in 2018, four more than Sapp ever had in a season. John Randle is also viewed as one of the best DTs in league history, and he had 137.5 sacks in 14 seasons. If Donald plays another three years, he could surpass that number.
