The respect shared between the Los Angeles Rams and Aaron Donald was put on display this week as a clause in his contract revealed the extent to which the team is willing to go to protect him and his interests.
Donald was held out this week after experiencing back soreness following the team's Week 3 defeat to the Denver Broncos. That was a team decision, and on Monday, Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported that his absence didn't affect his salary in any major way.
Thanks to the clause, Donald will still make $666,667 toward his $10 million roster bonus even if he’s inactive due to injury.
I have a lot of thoughts on the morality of per-game roster bonuses in a sport where players put their bodies on the line every week (we’ll save those
for another time), but they’ve become common in contracts. Normally, they’re based on the player being on the 46-man game-day roster, which protects the team financially if a player can’t make it out there physically.
Donald’s contract, which maxes out at $30 million, has a $10 million base, and then another $10 million in per-game roster bonuses. But those roster bonuses are based on Donald being on the 53-man active roster, rather than the 46-man game-day roster.
While the three-time Defensive Player of the Year wasn't able to use the Week 4 game to help with his bonuses that are predicated on production, unless he goes on injured reserve or retires in the middle of the season, he will continue to collect a weekly $666,667 bonus that goes on top of his base salary for the remainder of the season.
In the last three weeks, Donald has played in two games, earning $2 million in roster bonuses so far. Donald is able to focus on his health without a major risk to his wallet, and the team seems more than happy to do so because the All-Pro looks as good as ever.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Aaron Donald’s contract has clause that pays bonuses even if inactive
