Aaron Donald is done terrorizing NFL offenses.
The three-time AP Defensive Player of the Year announced his retirement after 10 seasons with the Rams via X, formerly Twitter, on Friday morning.
“Cheers to what’s next,” Donald wrote on X. “Extending a big thank you to the Rams and all of the fans for your support over these last 10 years. Much love.”
Cheers to what’s next. Extending a big thank you to the Rams and all of the fans for your support over these last 10 years. Much love. 🍾🙏🏽💪🏽 pic.twitter.com/edGxkUYdLz
— AD_99 (@AaronDonald97) March 15, 2024
Donald spent all 10 seasons of his career with the Rams after being drafted in 2014 with the 13th pick in the first round. He played two seasons in St. Louis before the Rams moved to Los Angeles in 2016.
The defensive tackle won three defensive player of the year awards in four seasons between 2017-2020. He also won a Super Bowl with the Rams in 2021.
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Aaron Donald stats
Donald has been one of the best defensive players in the NFL since debuting in 2014. He’s racked up three defensive player of the years, which is tied with J.J. Watt and Lawrence Taylor for the most all-time.
He’s also the second player in NFL history to play at least 10 seasons and be selected to the Pro Bowl in each season, per ESPN’s Evan Kaplan. Barry Sanders is the only other player with this feat.
Donald, 6-1, 280 pounds, was consistently a focal point of opponent’s protection game plans. He played in 154 games and made 111 sacks and 340 solo tackles.
Here’s a detailed year-by-year look at Donald’s stats.
| Year | Games | Total tackles | TFL | Sacks | Forced fumbles |
| 2014 | 16 | 48 | 18 | 9 | 2 |
| 2015 | 16 | 69 | 22 | 11 | 0 |
| 2016 | 16 | 47 | 17 | 8 | 2 |
| 2017 | 14 | 41 | 15 | 11 | 5 |
| 2018 | 16 | 59 | 25 | 20.5 | 4 |
| 2019 | 16 | 48 | 20 | 12.5 | 2 |
| 2020 | 16 | 45 | 14 | 13.5 | 4 |
| 2021 | 17 | 84 | 19 | 12.5 | 4 |
| 2022 | 11 | 49 | 10 | 5 | 1 |
| 2023 | 16 | 53 | 16 | 8 | 0 |
| Total | 154 | 543 | 176 | 111 | 24 |
Donald expressed his gratitude toward the Rams organization for fostering his 10-year career.
“I respected this game like no other and I’m blessed to be able to conclude my NFL career with the same franchise that drafted me,” Donald wrote on X. “Not many people get drafted to a team, win a World Championship with that team and retire with that team. I do not, and will not, take that for granted.”
Aaron Donald career earnings
Donald brought home lots of silverware: defensive player of the years, All-Pro selections, Pro Bowls and Super Bowl LVI. Because of his on-field dominance that’ll result in a future Hall of Fame induction, he also earned quite a lot of money over his 10 seasons.
The All-Pro DT even signed a record-breaking contract that made him the highest-paid non-QB in the league in 2022. The deal was three-years, $95 million. He is still under contract in the 2024 season despite retiring.
| Year | Earnings |
| 2014 | $6.1 million |
| 2015 | $946,000 |
| 2016 | $1.3 million |
| 2017 | $1.8 million |
| 2018 | $40.9 million |
| 2019 | $9.1 million |
| 2020 | $17 million |
| 2021 | $19 million |
| 2022 | $31.5 million |
| 2023 | $28.5 million |
| 2024 | $13.8 million |
| Total | $170.9 million |
This doesn’t include any endorsement deals that Donald signed during his career. He’s inked deals with Nike, Hulu, Pepsi among others, according to Sportskeeda.
