Getty Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams.
There was obviously not a lot to smile about for Aaron Donald during the 2022 season with the Los Angeles Rams. A season-ending ankle sprain and ending the year 5-12 prevented much gleaming.
But Donald, who was named to his ninth straight Pro Bowl, found a ray of sunshine as the Rams’ biggest rival, the San Francisco 49ers, got manhandled 31-7 by the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC championship on January 29. Seemingly as a dig on the 49ers, the team the Rams beat in last year’s NFC title game, he tweeted a GIF of himself being interviewed after winning the 2022 Super Bowl.
Rams Fans Chime In to Donald
Fans quickly reacted to Donald’s post.
“Yo this is legendary,” fantasy football analyst for the NFL Network LaQuan Jones posted in Donald’s mentions.
“I love the pettiness!” a fan tweeted, attaching a pic of Donald celebrating in last season’s conference title game.
“As the Niners are getting destroyed bahaha LOVE IT,” tweeted another fan, posting a picture of Donald with his Super Bowl ring.
“Love me some AD!” another fan reacted.
“GOAT sh*t,” said another Ram fan with the laughing and goat emojis directed toward Donald.
“Donald is a savage,” another Rams fan posted.
“So happy AD is just as happy as us fans,” the account Rams Tapes posted.
Even Donald’s wife, Erica, tweeted a response to her husband through laughing emoji’s.
@AaronDonald97 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
The official Rams Twitter account hit the “like” button on Donald’s GIF.
Insider Shares How 49ers Got Bullied at Their Own Game
Heavy Sports’ Matt Lombardo, who was at the Eagles-49ers game, wrote that the Eagles ended up playing the style of bully ball that was a staple of the 49ers.
“Sunday, [Eagles head coach] Nick Sirianni and the Eagles ripped a chapter from [49ers head coach] Kyle Shanahan’s playbook,” Lombardo wrote after the game.
The Eagles played the 49ers’ game of ground-and-pound.
“In the first half alone, the Eagles rushed for 79 yards, most impressively in the red zone, where Philadelphia scored rushing touchdowns of 6, 13, and 10 yards to open up a 21-7 lead at the break,” Lombardo wrote. “When Hurts crossed the goal line on a QB sneak with 43 seconds remaining in the 3rd quarter, the Eagles scored a postseason franchise record 4 rushing touchdowns. Dominating on the ground, and consistent success inside the 20-yard line is a winning formula in the NFL. Especially in the postseason.”
Lombardo added, “Sunday, the Eagles finished a perfect 4-for-4 scoring touchdowns inside the 20-yard line, effectively punching their ticket to Glendale, beating San Francisco at its own game, in the process.”
But that wasn’t all. The Eagles unleashed their fiercest pass rusher, Haason Reddick, on Brock Purdy. Reddick sacked him twice and forced a fumble. He also swooped up a fumble of Purdy after completing a sack. Philly’s defense also neutralized a high-powered 49ers offense to these numbers: 83 yards through the air and 81 yards on the rushing end. One year ago, the Rams held the 49ers to 232 passing yards but bottled the 49ers’ run game with 50 yards and an average of 2.5 yards per carry.