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Rams News | Los Angeles Rams - therams.com

Aaron Donald unretires, will play for Rams in 2026

He was "complete" and "full" when he retired on March 15, 2024.

On August 30, 2026, the appetite has returned.

Three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and legendary Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald announced Sunday he is coming out of retirement to rejoin the team.

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The possibility of Donald unretiring first surfaced when head coach Sean McVay reached out to Donald for his opinion on defensive end Myles Garrett as the team was exploring a trade for Garrett.

When players arrived for training camp on July 25, McVay confirmed Donald was going through a "very strict, regimented process" to put himself in a position to decide whether he wanted to play. McVay July 29  said he and Donald discussed timelines and remained in contact. Though he declined to specify what those timelines were, McVay did say Donald's training was going "really well."

The closest thing to a timeline McVay disclosed was when he said on July 31 that he didn't expect there to be an update on Donald until after the team returned from training camp to its Woodland Hills practice facility. However, that same day, McVay said that "if there's an arrow, it's trending upward," the strongest hint yet that a Donald comeback was going to happen.

Browse through photos of Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald's best career moments and get ready for more as he returns from retirement!

On Sunday, Donald made it official. And after rejoicing in the spring of 2024, quarterbacks are mourning – or rather, scrambling – in the fall of 2026 now that Donald's hunger is back.

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