All of those elite skills returned in breathtaking fashion on Monday night in a display that was simultaneously awe-inspiring and mind-boggling. A performance like the one Donald put together against the Giants on Monday Night Football simply should not be possible for a man who has been completely removed from the professional game for two years. Any lingering hopes that retirement might have dulled Donald’s razor-sharp senses were dashed almost immediately as he proceeded to systematically dismantle interior protection, aggressively rush the quarterback, and stop running plays dead in their tracks before they could ever truly develop.
While the traditional box score might not look overly impressive at first glance—with Donald registering just one solo tackle and two assists—the real story, as it so often is with elite defensive linemen, was hidden deep within the granular details. According to data from Sumer Sports, Donald played a total of 32 snaps during the contest and registered a staggering, otherworldly 27.8% pass rush win rate. To put that incredible figure into proper perspective, standout edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. finished the 2025 season with a win rate of 26.2%, while reigning Defensive Player of the Year—and Donald’s current teammate—Myles Garrett finished his campaign with a win rate of 24.6%.
In case those metrics are not terrifying enough for opposing offensive coordinators, the reality of the situation is about to get much scarier, because there is a demonstrable and significant difference between pass rush win rates when comparing edge rushers and interior defensive linemen. On the whole, it is widely accepted across football analytics that it is much easier to win from the outside. On the edge, even the absolute best pass rushers in the league have to contend primarily with an offensive tackle, and maybe occasionally a tight end or running back executing a chip block. Conversely, when an offense decides to allocate extra attention and double-team a top-tier defensive tackle, it almost always means assigning both an interior guard and the center to block them, which is exponentially more difficult to fight through under any circumstances.
It is precisely for this reason that Kansas City Chiefs star Chris Jones led the entire NFL in pass rush win rate from the defensive tackle position in 2025 at a flat 20%, while standouts like Jeffery Simmons and Calais Campbell finished tied for second across the league with 15% each. Therefore, for Aaron Donald to step out of retirement, suit up after a lengthy two-year break from the game, and immediately post a 27.8% win rate simply defies conventional football logic and belief.
Yet, as terrifying as Donald appears when viewed in isolation, the truly scary proposition for the rest of the league is that we have not even come close to seeing the full, terrifying potential of this newly constructed Rams defense yet. During Monday night’s game against the Giants, viewers caught a glimpse of what is possible through various combined pass-rushing packages, with Donald aggressively penetrating the interior of the pocket while players like Kam Curl rotated out of a dynamic safety blitz. Imagine for a single moment how devastating this front is going to look when a perennial game-wrecker like Myles Garrett serves as the complementary edge rusher to Donald’s relentless interior pressure. That exact scenario is the primary reason why the preseason hype surrounding this Rams defense reached such a fever pitch, and why opposing offenses are quickly realizing that life in the trenches is only going to get much worse as the season progresses.
There are certain fundamental things we are conditioned to believe as sports fans, and near the top of that list is the unwavering conviction that nobody should ever be able to walk away from the game, spend two years relaxing off the couch, and seamlessly step right back into the National Football League at an elite level. Yet, Aaron Donald did precisely that, immediately returning not merely as a brilliant, serviceable defensive tackle, but as quite literally one of the very best players at his position in the entire NFL. The formal enshrinement and gold bust waiting for him in Canton, Ohio, was temporarily delayed by his brief retirement, but it is ultimately coming—and this year, Aaron Donald is going to prove that inevitability with every single snap he plays.