Sean McVay has been accused of tipping his hand all along, but there is at least one NFL insider who believes that the Los Angeles Rams will ultimately get 10-time Pro Bowler and eight-time First Team All-Pro Aaron Donald back for the 2026 season.
That has been the way the situation has seemingly been trending, but uncertainty remains amid a lack of a concrete answer from Donald.
However, the signs and circumstances may be a better gauge at this point.
NFL Insider Expects Aaron Donald Will Unretire, Rejoin Rams
GettyOptimism is growing about Aaron Donald returning to the Rams.
Donald retired following the 2023 season, but the Rams piqued his interest with their trade for Myles Garrett, who has openly said he would like to play with Donald and taken part in LA’s less-than-subtle push for the franchise icon’s return.
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer recently expressed his belief that Donald would return, and that the Rams, McVay, and Donald already have a “plan” in place for when that happens.
Breer tripled down on his stance on Wednesday.
“I don’t think it’ll happen before they break camp at Loyola Marymount. But I believe–what, it’s [August] 5? I think that they go back, maybe, in a couple days. And I think after that, next week, I think all of this is in play. I do think he’s coming back. He and McVay are very close. There’s been a constant open line of communication there, and they’ve actually come up with a plan for what it’s going to look like if and when he does come back,” Breer told Colin Cowherd on “The Herd” on August 5, noting the “interesting way” the “framework” for the plan came about.
“The framework for that is the holdouts. In 2017 and 2018. Now, you remember, he reported to camp very late both years. Both years, he won Defensive Player of the Year. So, they have a way to do this. Now it’s not the same. Of course, he’s 35. Now he’s, obviously, spent two years away from football. But they feel like they’ve got a good plan.”
Part of that plan is having the likes of Kobie Turner and Braden Fiske, as well as Poona Ford and Tyler Davis.
That stable will allow the Rams to rotate and keep Donald fresh.
“They’ve got all these interior defensive linemen; they don’t need to play him 60 plays a game,” Breer told Cowherd. “So, they’re going to have a way of managing him–that isn’t going to cost the team.”
Breer then compared the situation to Eric Weddle, who came out of retirement after one season to help the Rams win the Super Bowl in 2021.
Notably, Weddle only came back for the postseason, but that was not Breer’s point.
“He [Weddle] was there because they needed him to be there. And he played every snap, because the Rams needed him to play every snap. I don’t think that’s going to be the case with Aaron Donald in 2026.”
Rams’ ‘Plan’ for Aaron Donald Explained
GettyAaron Donald and Sean McVay may have already plotted their course.
Breer first broke down McVay and the Rams’ apparent “plan” for Donald in July, noting the star’s two holdouts as the inspiration for the current approach. The Rams’ current group of linemen will only enhance what has worked in the past.
“So the next question, obviously, is whether Aaron Donald is going to be part of that defense. Donald’s working through training to make sure he can feel like himself out there—and the bar for him to feel like himself is, obviously, very high. But he and Sean McVay have a very close relationship, and they have established a rough timeline for his return should Donald go through with it,” Breer wrote on July 31, setting the timeline for the Rams’ return to Woodland Hills.
“The aforementioned depth and the balance on the defensive front would help them manage Donald, too.”
Again, until Donald is in a Rams uniform, the watch will continue.
It is notable, though, that McVay also suggested a similar timeline for a resolution to the situation with Donald. His candor is part of why his ability to hide the truth about Donald has been in question.
Insider Expects Aaron Donald to Rejoin Rams Amid ‘Good Plan’