The news of Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s retirement was a shock, but it wasn’t entirely unexpected. In fact, his contract from 2022 had been specifically designed to allow him to walk away after two years without sacrificing any money he had already received. This contract offered him $65 million over two years with no offset on guarantees, providing him with the option to retire after 2023 with no financial penalty. If he chose to play in 2024, he would receive an additional $30 million, which he ultimately decided to forgo.
On the morning of his retirement, there was a surprising development: the Rams had restructured his deal, creating $9.2 million in 2024 cap space. This decision is puzzling considering Donald’s retirement and led to speculation that the team may have wanted to shift some of the money to the following year, possibly after his retirement is officially processed post June 1. Despite the uncertainty surrounding the reasons for the restructuring, Donald has officially announced his retirement.
It’s worth noting that Donald had actually submitted a retirement letter to the Rams back in May 2022, a month before his previous deal was torn up and replaced with a three-year, $95 million contract. While there is speculation about the legitimacy of his retirement announcement, considering his previous retirement letter, it is important to recognize his history with the decision to retire. The details of his retirement and the circumstances leading up to it remain unclear, but the news of Aaron Donald stepping away from football is significant for the Rams and the NFL.
