Aaron Donald Hints at Rams Comeback After Myles Garrett Trade: What He Actually Said
Aaron Donald is the most disruptive interior defender of his generation. He retired in 2024 at 32 with three Defensive Player of the Year awards, a Super Bowl ring, and nothing left to prove. So when the Rams pulled off the trade of the offseason and landed Myles Garrett from Cleveland, the universe immediately started asking the question Donald had to know was coming.
Now he is feeding it.
Pat McAfee revealed on his show this week that he texted Donald the moment the Garrett trade dropped. Donald wrote back. The message was short, and for retired all-time greats, short is everything.
“35, removed two years ago, gotta see if that fire can light back up,” Donald told McAfee, per the host’s recap.
That is not a no. That is barely even close to a no. Donald followed up by telling NFL insider Jordan Schultz he is “for sure flirting with the idea” of joining a Rams defense that just added the most explosive edge rusher in the league.
The math is dangerous. Garrett on the outside. Donald on the inside. Kobie Turner already a Pro Bowl interior force. Jared Verse, the centerpiece Cleveland just received, was the one piece this group was missing, and the Rams replaced him with a top-five all-time defensive talent on the outside.
If Donald comes back, this becomes the most terrifying defensive front in the NFL. It is not a question.
Sean McVay is already daydreaming about it. The Rams head coach said this week that if Donald wants to “dust them off at the age of 35, I bet you he could still do it at a pretty high clip.” That is your coach giving the green light. Publicly. Without flinching.
The pushback is financial. Adam Schefter pointed out on ESPN that Los Angeles is essentially capped out. The Rams told reporters “right now, they’ve spent all their money,” and Garrett’s new contract eats into the room that already existed. Bringing Donald back would require some kind of veteran-minimum miracle or a creative restructure, and Donald has never been a veteran-minimum kind of player.
Then there is the wife test. Erica Donald posted a three-word message after the rumors picked up steam, and the message did not exactly scream “go win another ring.” This is a married man with kids, a thriving wrestling career, and a life outside football. He left for real reasons.
Still, the texture of his response is impossible to ignore. Retired players who are truly done with the game do not text Pat McAfee about fire lighting back up. They say no. They go fishing.
Donald is not saying no.
The Rams are dreaming. The defense is already a problem with Garrett on it. Adding Donald, even at 80 percent, makes them the most disruptive front in the league and turns Los Angeles into the trendy NFC pick overnight.
The smart money still says he stays retired. Money is tight, his family situation matters, and a comeback after two full seasons off is a brutal physical ask, even for a freak.
But Aaron Donald sounded like a guy who is at least listening. McVay is making the pitch. Garrett is the bait. The Rams have a window, and they are dangling the line.
If he bites, the NFC just changed.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
