Rams literally leaving the door open for Aaron Donald return

Aaron Donald announcing his retirement after the 2023 season didn't come as a major shock. Retirement was something he had been flirting with for a couple of years, so to NFL fans, it was predictable to some degree.

The predictability of it has nothing to do with how huge of a loss Donald is for the Los Angeles Rams. Los Angeles had Donald, one of the best defensive players in NFL history, under contract and were expecting him to be a major contributor for them in the 2024 season after they had lost in the Wild Card Round of the NFL playoffs.

While he has stepped away, the Rams haven't lost all hope. They're leaving the door open for Donald to make a return. Literally.

Rams are literally leaving the door open for Aaron Donald if he chooses to make NFL comeback

Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp told NFL Network's Bridget Condon that Donald's locker door is open and ready for the standout defensive tackle to step right in and contribute. Kupp sounds willing to do whatever it takes, even if it means he has to give several backhanded comments to the media, for Donald to come back.

The Rams have every reason to desperately want Donald back. Not only is he a team leader and a future Hall of Famer, but he had a good year last season! Sure, he might not have been prime Aaron Donald, but he had eight sacks, 16 tackles for loss, and 23 QB hits. He was a Pro Bowler and was First Team All-Pro.

To fill the void, the Rams used their first two draft picks on Florida State defensive linemen Jared Verse and Braden Fiske.

Donald likely won't reverse course right away after seeing Kupp's message, but when games continue to get closer he might get that itch again. If that is the case, knowing that the team will welcome him back with open arms and seeing that his locker is ready for him to go might be what puts the decision to play again over the top.