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Pro football Talk has reported that star DT Aaron Donald has ended his holdout and has reported to the Rams to take his physical. He will not play against the Indianpolis Colts on Sunday.
Donald was risking losing $106,014 a week while he was out, and he has apparently calculated that he’d rather not miss out on his weekly game checks. He still wants a long-term contract that makes him the highest-paid player in the NFL, and he still may get it. But for now he’s ready to go back to work, on his old contract.
So, it seems like the Rams got what they wanted in regards to giving Donald a new contract, but it basically just delayed another possible standoff.
No new deal for Rams DT Aaron Donald at this time, but the two sides will keep working towards one, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 9, 2017
But the big news is that Aaron Donald is back with the Rams and he will most likely play at home against Washington in Week 2.
What exactly was accomplished by Donald during this holdout? Probably not a lot. He’s a top five player in the NFL and the rookie contract he was under is flawed and changes need to be made. He’s enough of a superstar that his actions could get enough attention that NFL stars could start getting better contracts in the future.
For now, let’s just take solace in the fact that our defensive line just got a LOT stronger.