The Aaron Donald situation has hit a standstill. After weeks of signs that Donald was ramping up towards a return, with an expectation if he would play in Week 1 that he would have made it abundantly clear that was his intention by the end of the preseason, the star defensive tackle’s progress towards coming out of retirement hasn’t been as clear to the public for a while. With the Los Angeles Rams only a week and a half away from playing the San Francisco 49ers in Australia, the odds of Donald being
on the field for that game feel as though they’ve dropped to near-zero.
Will Donald actually play in 2026? And if not, when will he make that clear?
Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk once again went back to Donald’s contract as a potential roadblock, even speculating that if money was the only thing stopping him that both the player and the team would prefer to keep that under wraps. Because Donald doesn’t want fans to think he’s greedy and the team doesn’t want fans to think they’re cheap.
However, there’s also the matter of simply having the cash—maybe at least $30 million in a signing bonus—to pay Donald if the Rams need to restructure his deal in order to get him under the cap.
Aaron Donald’s contract looms over his potential return (PFT)
The Rams currently have $16.7 million in cap space. The day Donald returns to the roster (if/when that happens), his $30 million will hit the cap. By 4:00 p.m. ET on that day, the Rams would need to create at least $13.3 million in cap space.
Whatever the magic number for 2026, it would be very easy to restructure his pay. They’d give him a large chunk of it as a signing bonus and add voidable years to the deal, pushing the excess cap charge into future years and significantly reducing his 2026 cap number.
But cap space is only part of the calculation. Cash is the other. All teams have spending budgets. Most are set before the league year begins. And $37 million went to Myles Garrett in early June, on top of the various commitments previously made to the other players on the team.
Donald “has to feel like he’s ready” says Peter Schrager
Schrager says “the numbers have to make sense”.
New Aaron Donald Rumors on Return, Contract Leak Ahead of Rams’ NFL Opener vs. 49ers in Australia (B/R)
The Los Angeles Rams “are still optimistic” about a possible return by three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Fowler reported Sunday on SportsCenter the situation remains fluid as the Rams prepare for their opener against the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne, Australia. Should Donald decide to come back, L.A. will then focus on the financial particulars:
“He’s had several workouts with the team that they’ve had to list as like a free-agent workout. He’s done that. Still no firm answer, but there’s not a huge rush here. I’ve never really sensed that because they know Aaron Donald keeps himself in phenomenal shape. He can come in as an in-season sniper. You know, he doesn’t have to play the 17 games. They’re getting ready to go to Australia. Now, there is still time. They’re leaving late in the process, just a few days before that next Thursday. So, still some time if he wants to get signed and get acclimated. He’s also got his contract. He’s got one year, $30 million that’s frozen from his previous contract when he retired. Do they need to re that up? They’re sort of waiting for him to decide, ‘Do I definitely want to play?’ Once he does that, then they can address his contract.“
Rams 53-man roster prediction: Who makes final cut? (NY Post)
Wide receivers (7)
Puka Nacua, Davante Adams, Jordan Whittington, Xavier Smith, Konata Mumpfield, Tutu Atwell, CJ Daniels
Cardinals acquire former Rams TE in trade with Jaguars (RamsWire)
Hunter Long is back in the NFC West. On Sunday, the Jaguars traded Long to the Arizona Cardinals, the second time in his career that he’s been traded.
The Los Angeles Rams originally acquired Long in 2023 as part of the Jalen Ramsey trade that sent the All-Pro cornerback to Miami. Long, a 2021 third-round pick by the Dolphins, spent two years with the Rams before signing with the Jaguars in 2025 free agency.
The Rams just did something that could signal Badger Nyzier Fourqurean made the cut (badgerofhonor)
One of the big surprises of the preseason was Nyzier Fourqurean, who literally came out of nowhere, considering he didn’t play college football last year, and began to perform both in the Los Angeles Rams training camp and in the preseason games. The Rams just cut one of the players he was fighting with the most for a roster spot: Alzillion Hamilton. That’s big news for Fourqurean, though; he’s not for sure saved from a cut just yet.
