Aaron Donald is officially back with the Los Angeles Rams, agreeing to a revised one-year deal worth $20 million, with incentives bringing the max value up to $30 million. On Thursday, Spotrac released further details on Donald's deal, showing how the Rams got creative with their superstar's new contract.
Donald still has a $10 million base salary and $10 million available in per-game roster bonuses, as initially reported, but his cap hit is only $5.8 million this year. That's thanks to the fact that the Rams tacked on four void years after 2026, allowing them to spread out his $22.4 million signing bonus.
As a result, he'll have an $18 million cap charge in 2027, even if he retires. That'll count against the books as dead money. The Rams had
to push money out to future years because they only had about $15 million in cap space before Donald returned.
DL Aaron Donald's 1-year, $20M #Rams Contract
— Spotrac (@spotrac) September 3, 2026
Cap Hits
2026: $5.8M
2027: $18M (void)
Base Salary: $10M (gtd)
Per-Game-Active: $10M
$666,666 per game, max 15
$10M Incentive Package: pic.twitter.com/KJy8RDhIgt
When it comes to the incentives Donald could earn, they're essentially all team-based. If he plays at least 15% of the snaps and the Rams make the playoffs, he earns another $2.5 million, plus $1.25 million if he's active for the wild-card round or they earn a bye.
If they reach the divisional round, another $1.25 million. A conference title game win and 15% regular-season snaps and 20% conference championship snaps, another $2.5 million.
And if they win the Super Bowl with Donald playing at least 20% of the snaps in that game (plus 15% in the regular season), he'll get another $2.5 million. That's a total of $10 million if the Rams win the Super Bowl and he hits playing time requirements.
In all likelihood, Donald will make at least $23.75 million, assuming he stays healthy and the Rams make the playoffs.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Full breakdown of Aaron Donald's contract: Small 2026 cap hit, $18M in 2027
