The San Francisco 49ers have watched their NFC West rivals, the Los Angeles Rams, add several talented players to their roster this offseason, including defensive lineman Aaron Donald, who unretired after two seasons to play in 2026.
Donald is considered one of the greatest football players in the sport's history. In 154 games, he's recorded 543 tackles, 260 quarterback hits, 111 sacks, 24 forced fumbles, 21 passes defensed and seven fumble recoveries. He also made 10 Pro Bowls, eight All-Pro teams, won Defensive Player of the Year three times, won Defensive Rookie of the Year once and won a Super Bowl.
Now that he's returning to the game, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed his team's reaction to both the day that he called it a career and
his comeback.
“I remember when he retired, I didn’t see the alerts and stuff, but I heard people yelling down the hallway, cheering. I was like, ‘what the heck is going on?’ And then I got it on my phone, and it was probably the most we’ve celebrated in the offseason ever," Shanahan told reporters in Australia this week. "And then it was the exact opposite this year. I wasn’t crushed on the Sunday that he decided because I decided a month ago it was happening. So, I prepared for that the right way, and it is what it is. He’s a hell of a player, and we’ll have our work cut out for him.”
Donald still appears to be in incredible shape, and he doesn't seem like the type of player to just lose his ability, even at 35 years old, but we won't know until we see him in a game, which will likely be this week against San Francisco.
The 49ers should be concerned, considering their latest depth chart still has Connor Colby at left guard, which didn't go well at all in 2025 or at any point during training camp this year. Donald could dominate the middle of the line with Braden Fiske and Kobie Turner, while newcomer Myles Garrett attacks the edge opposite Byron Young.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Kyle Shanahan explains how 49ers reacted to devastating offseason news
