Will Aaron Donald Play in Game 1 Against 49ers? Sean McVay Answers
The Rams play the 49ers in Australia on opening day of the 2026 NFL season.
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Aaron Donald and Sean McVay inside the circle (Image via IMAGO)
The Los Angeles Rams officially announced that DT Aaron Donald is ending his two and a half year hiatus to re-sign a one-year extension with the club, just two weeks before the opening-day clash against the San Francisco 49ers. Now, the first question after this development arise, that is will Donald feature in the tie?
Reporters asked head coach Sean McVay whether Donald will play in week one. McVay remained non-committal.
I’m not going to talk about any sort of plans; it’s going to be a day at a time for us.
Sean McVay said at Sunday’s presser from the Rams facility
McVay’s silence makes sense. The bout against the Niners is scheduled to take place in Sydney, Australia. The Rams will be cautious about the travel fatigue of a player who hasn’t played competitive football since the 2023-24 postseason.
What does that mean for Australia? The first step was, alright, if you’re coming back, let’s do that, let’s get you back on the practice field, let’s get you acclimated to your teammates, to your coaches. And then we’ll see what that ramp-up period looks like, whether or not he’s available or whether or not we think it’s best to play him in Australia.
McVay said
Donald played 10 seasons with the Rams. He was drafted 13th overall when the franchise was still based in St. Louis and remained part of it even after its relocation to LA. In those 10 seasons, Donald produced historic numbers. He had 543 combined tackles, 176 tackles for loss, and 24 forced fumbles in 154 regular-season games.
Rams HC Sean McVay not been determined whether Aaron Donald will play in the Rams' season opener against the 49ers in Australia:
— OurSF49ers (@OurSf49ers) August 31, 2026
"We'll see what that ramp-up period looks like…but we're obviously excited to be able to have him back." pic.twitter.com/dvBvzo5xCE
Pro Football Focus graded him 90.0 or higher every season he played in. From 2014 to 2023, the former University of Pittsburgh star generated more quarterback pressures than any other defender, 840 regular-season pressures on 5,470 pass-rush snaps via Pro Football Reference.
Donald earned 10 Pro Bowl and 8 First Team All-Pro selections. In 2021, he won a Super Bowl. Donald racked up four tackles and two sacks, as well as the game-sealing pressure play on Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in the final.
Micah Parsons reacts to Aaron Donald coming out of retirement to re-sign with the Rams
In early August, Micah Parsons recorded an episode of the Edge Podcast where he ranked the best defenses in the league. Parsons ranked the Rams defense as the fifth best in the league.
The Packers’ edge praised the Rams for adding Super Bowl winner Trent McDuffie in the secondary and pulling off a blockbuster trade for reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Myles Garrett.
You saw it when they had a healthy pass rush when they won Super Bowls with [Patrick Mahomes]. And they got the guy [Myles Garrett] who’s going to get the ball out in 2.7 seconds.
Parsons said
Parsons added to his previous hypothesis after Aaron Donald announced his return.
They got the last infinity stone.
Parsons said
He compared Donald’s return to NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan’s.
He took two years off… I don’t care how long. I think [what] people don’t realize… [Michael] Jordan took three years off… He still came back [won] championships. This could be one of those.
Parsons said
Parsons’ been keeping up with history lessons. The great Michael Jordan retired after winning three championships. He took a three-year break before rejoining the Chicago Bulls and added three more rings. Donald can easily have a similar impact to Jordan.
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