Random Ramsdom: Aaron Donald may miss the rest of the season

Rams injury report: Aaron Donald DNP on Wednesday, David Long Jr. limited (RamsWire)

“The season is winding down for the Los Angeles Rams, with just three games remaining for the defending Super Bowl champs. Next up are the Denver Broncos, who the Rams are facing after just playing the Green Bay Packers on Monday night.

Because it’s a short week, the Rams did not practice on Wednesday, so the participation levels on the first injury report are merely an estimate. That being said, Aaron Donald remains listed as a non-participant, as he would’ve missed practice again.”

Broncos HC Sounds Off on Rams QB Baker Mayfield (SportsIllustrated)

“On the heels of missing Week 15 due to a concussion, Wilson is expected to play, but in Stafford’s place, it’ll be Baker Mayfield calling the signals for the Rams. Stafford suffered a concussion himself, which was followed by a scary spinal-cord contusion, and was placed on injured reserve entering Week 14. That’s when Mayfield arrived.

Knowing who he’ll be facing on Sunday, Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett talked about Mayfield on Monday and shared his thoughts on the job the young veteran signal-caller has done in Tinseltown.

“I’m going to have to watch him a little bit more to get a feel for him,” Hackett said of Mayfield. “He’s been in a lot of places right now. I think three places just this year. I know that’s difficult, so I give him so much credit for what he’s going through. To be able to enter into a team and pick up the system and be able to operate it—I don’t think anybody understands how difficult that is.”

Sean McVay happy to see Jared Goff playing well for Lions (RamsWire)

Photo by Harry How/Getty Images

“This season, Goff has 23 touchdown passes and seven interceptions, posting a passer rating of 97.2 – the third-best of his career. McVay has taken notice of the way Goff is playing for the Lions and he’s happy to see his former quarterback succeeding.

“He’s done a great job. Really, he’s played really good football, you can see he’s playing with confidence,” McVay said Tuesday. “I think (Lions OC) Ben Johnson has done an outstanding job of being able to kind of put them in some good spots, and then Jared ultimately brings it to life, but they’ve really played well offensively. Again, just being a fan of the game, we’ve crossed over with them and I think Jared’s playing at a really high level and he’s done outstanding.”

Goff has thrown just 15 interceptions in two seasons with the Lions, which is one fewer than he had in 16 games with the Rams in 2019. He’s cut down on the turnovers and once again shown the accuracy he played with earlier in his career, which has turned the Lions into a fun team to watch.”

From the Podium: Broncos, Week 16 (TheRams.com)

Photo by Harry How/Getty Images

“Rams head coach Sean McVay, linebacker Bobby Wagner and quarterback Baker Mayfield each held press conferences with local media Wednesday, discussing young players capitalizing on opportunities, facing Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson and more.

Here are some of the highlights and key takeaways from those conversations, which you can watch in your entirety below.

“A lot of those young defensive lineman, I’ve been really pleased with Bobby Brown and the way that he’s played, I think you’re seeing a lot of opportunities for Michael Hoecht.” – McVay”

7 LA Rams players returning in 2023 who you may have forgotten (RamblinFan)

“The LA Rams may be a team whose next major stop is the 2023 NFL Draft, but this is still a team with a Pro Bowl game worth of talent. On offense, the team returns QB Matthew Stafford, WRs Cooper Kupp, Allen Robinson, and Van Jefferson. While it remains to be seen how the offense will address the offensive line and running backs in the off-season, I think there is a pretty potent core of players coming back next season.

On defense, the Rams will welcome back DL Aaron Donald, OLB Leonard Floyd, ILBs Bobby Wagner and Ernest Jones, and DB Jalen Ramsey. While there are those who continue to scream for the outright firing of DC Raheem Morris, there is not a team in the NFL who would not be thrilled to welcome the Rams’ returning defensive veterans to their own roster.

But with all of the shuffle and chaos with the Rams’ roster this season, it would be easy to slip on a few of the Rams players who are returning as not-yet-tested underlings. The young guys may have had minimal action this season, but they may yet earn significant playing time either as a starter or rotational player in 2023. Who are we talking about? I can think of seven players off the top of my head:”