Aaron Donald did like a veteran would.
He announced a possibility of joining the Los Angeles Rams to end his two-year retirement at the beginning of training camp. He then negotiated in both the media and with the Rams brass before signing after training camp and following the Rams final preseason game.
Veterans don’t like camp. And Donald, took his healthy routine over the rigors of an NFL camp before joining the Rams this week. He is also coming back to the Rams because they have a very good chance at winning Super Bowl LXI … they are currently favored to do so by the books.
If the Rams were on a downward trajectory, if Matthew Staffored had retired and the roster was depleted by injuries and age, I am willing to bet Darnold wouldn’t have ended his retirement. He would not have started the clock over on his five-year wait to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
While Darnold won a Super Bowl with the Rams five years ago, they beat the Cincinnati Bengals in Roman Numeral LVI in a close game in which Darnold played a pivotal role. Every NFL player wants to win it all, hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy in a shining moment of glory. Sometimes, good players on bad teams sign as free agents in an attempt to get the big win after toiling on bad teams.
In 1994, the San Francisco 49ers added nine free agents and at least three of them stated in no uncertain terms that they were hooking up with Eddie DeBartolo’s team for a chance to win it all. Among that group was Richard Dent, Rickey Jackson and Deion Sanders. All outstanding players but members of also-ran squads.