“I’m not everything” – Aaron Donald recall his arduous journey to Super Bowl LVI, how last year’s divisional round loss nearly broke him
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Aaron Donald
Aaron Donald is considered by many to be the greatest defensive player in the NFL. He was the centerpiece to the Rams’ victory in Super Bowl LVI. The 30-year old defensive tackle made the game-winning tackles that helped Los Angeles win the Super Bowl.
However, the path to Donald winning the Super Bowl was filled with a lot of challenges, heartbreaks, missed opportunities, to say the least. Aaron Donald had a conversation about his journey to Super Bowl with Peter King on his talk show.
Aaron Donald had the worst game of his career against Green Bay in the 2021 divisional round
“Last year,” Donald said, “the thing about the Green Bay game, what broke my heart the most, I felt like I wasn’t at my best.” The LA Rams lost the divisional round of the players to NFC rival Green Bay Packers. The Rams lost 32-18 to the Packers thus ending their Super Bowl run. Donald was not at his usual best in the game because he tore his rib cartilage the previous week in a wild-card win over Seattle.
This was one of Donald’s worst performances. the 8x Pro Bowl defensive tackle had zero solo tackles, one assisted tackle, zero sacks. Zero everything! “I’m a piece to the puzzle. I’m not everything. That day, I wasn’t able to be that piece for my team,” Donald recalled. “That hurt, man. It really did. I don’t think I ever cried that much, you know, after a game. I was in the shower. I was in the locker room. I just couldn’t stop crying.”
The Rams also played Super Bowl LIII three years ago. However, the Rams were unable to hold Tom Brady and the Patriots off as the latter won their sixth Super Bowl. It was an abysmal performance from both the Rams offense and defense. The offense only scored a field goal the entire game.
Super Bowl LIII coupled with last year’s divisional loss, it looked like one of the greatest defensive players might never win a Super Bowl ring. However, Aaron Donald was a terrific leader this season. During the NFC Championship Game, he was seen giving an electrifying speech that invigorated the entire Rams’ sideline.
“Happy tears,” Donald said how he felt after winning the Super Bowl. “This is truly football heaven. Von Miller was saying that the whole time leading up to the game. We’re living in it right now.” In the end, all of Donald’s hard work paid off and he can finally say that he’s a World Champ!
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Yash Karandekar
(1023 Articles Published)