Aaron Donald is back with the Rams, but Los Angeles still has to decide how quickly it wants to put him back on the field.
Pro Football Talk reported Sunday that a Week 1 debut against the 49ers in Australia remains “possible,” with Donald’s availability depending on how his ramp-up progresses after two years away from football.
Had he returned earlier in August, the Rams reportedly believed they could have built him toward 30-40 snaps in the opener.
PFT also raised the possibility of Los Angeles using an injury designation to create a longer runway.
After the initial 53-man roster is established, teams can place an injured player on reserve/IR and later designate him to return.
The catch is substantial: Donald would need a legitimate qualifying injury, would have to miss at least four games and would use one of the Rams’ limited return designations.
Los Angeles has already used the special cutdown-day provision on offensive linemen Justin Dedich and Keagen Trost, who were placed on injured reserve before the 53-man deadline.
NFL rules allow only two players placed on an applicable reserve list during final cuts to retain return eligibility.
But if Donald simply needs more time to regain football conditioning, the Rams have a far easier option.
They can keep him on the 53-man roster, allow him to practice and simply list him inactive on game day for as long as they believe necessary.
There is no four-game minimum attached to that approach, meaning Donald could miss Week 1, Week 2 or however much time Sean McVay believes he needs before returning.
That flexibility could prove especially valuable for a 35-year-old defensive tackle who has not played an NFL snap since January 2024.
The Rams have already gone all in defensively, pairing Donald with Myles Garrett after their blockbuster offseason move.
PFT’s injury-list scenario offers one possible path.
The simplest one, though, may be giving Donald all the practice he needs without forcing an artificial timetable for his return.
