For the first time ever, the Los Angeles Rams put Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald on the same field together, a dream fans have been waiting for since the start of the season.
That was supposed to occur in Week 2, but Garrett needed surgery, keeping him out for the last seven games. Suddenly, Donald's return went from luxury to necessity, and the story of a legendary player's return turned into a battle for survival. The Rams went from the league's best to a circus of injuries and in-game letdowns.
Despite all that, and jokes that Donald should re-retire mid-season, the future Hall of Famer has been valiant, leading a defensive line that has been hammered with injuries. Garrett's been out, Poona Ford has been lost for the season, and Kobie Turner
was placed on injured reserve.
Then, the Rams finally witnessed what their defensive line could be like at full strength. Garrett secured three sacks and a forced fumble in the team's 20-13 win over the Washington Commanders, utilizing the impact of Donald and others to dominate on the edge.
What the game also illustrated is how much Donald kept the defensive line together during Garrett's absence. Garrett was at his best on Sunday, but he isn't in true football shape yet, as he just came off injured reserve and played only 60% of the snaps. He'll get there, but the reason the star defender kept having advantageous matchups was due to the attention being put on Donald.
All of a sudden, the Rams went from a beaten-down 2-4 team to a squad on a three-game win streak, securing two of those wins before Garrett's return. Despite his two-year absence from football, the attention Donald continues to draw – while playing the number of snaps that he has – is simply astonishing.
With Garrett back in the fold, the unit is firing on all cylinders. However, the fact that they didn't have Garrett for seven weeks and continued to rally around Donald is simply a testament to his greatness and why he'll go down as an all-time legend.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Aaron Donald deserves credit for holding Rams together while Myles Garrett was out
