Since Aaron Donald’s return was made official on Sunday, BetMGM has taken 22% of the bets and 30% of the money wagered on this season’s Super Bowl champion on the Los Angeles Rams. Los Angeles has led that market since it opened, but not by this margin, and the Rams have moved from +550 to +500 as a result.
The deal itself is one year at $20m base, rising to as much as $30m with playoff incentives, per NFL Network.
Donald, 35, retired in March 2024 after 10 NFL seasons, 111 career sacks, 10 Pro Bowl selections and eight first-team All-Pro honours. He worked out for the Rams on 5 August and again on 16 August, then made the call in private.
“To be honest with you, it was on and off for a little while, but I think I knew this decision about two weeks [ago]. I know the world was saying all types of things and nobody knew what was going on, but I kind of knew for two weeks,” Donald said.
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The pass-rush pair on paper
The Rams pair Donald with Myles Garrett, whom they acquired from the Cleveland Browns on 1 June in exchange for Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick. Garrett is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and set the NFL single-season sack record last year with 23.
Between them, Donald and Garrett hold five of the past nine Defensive Player of the Year awards. Bleacher Report ranked them the top defensive duo of the 2026 season.
“Two all-time greats, whose busts will one day adorn the Pro Football Hall of Fame, are about to line up next to one another. Opponents can’t stop both,” the outlet wrote.
The Super Bowl is coming to their stadium
Super Bowl LXI will be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on 14 February 2027, the Rams’ own home ground. Los Angeles won Super Bowl LVI at the same venue after the 2021 season, with Donald on the field.
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Melbourne opens the season without a guarantee
The Rams open the year against the San Francisco 49ers at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, kickoff 10:35am local time on Friday 11 September, the first regular-season NFL game in Australia.
Whether Donald plays is unsettled. Head coach Sean McVay has said the team is taking it a day at a time, and Donald took part only in individual drills in his first practice on Sunday. The two-game roster exemption the league granted the Rams for Donald expires on Friday 11 September, one day after the opener, so a corresponding roster move is due immediately after Week 1 regardless of whether he suits up in Melbourne.
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