🏈 Will Aaron Donald Unretire? Rumors, Odds to Return to Rams with Myles Garrett

In one of the biggest trades in recent sports history, the Los Angeles Rams acquired two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns, and the move has everyone wondering, will Aaron Donald unretire?

Garrett and Donald are two of the most dominant players the NFL has ever seen, with a combined five NFL DPOYs, 15 All-Pros, and 236.5 sacks, so when ESPN's Adam Schefter said he believes that it's "more likely than not" Donald could unretire, it threw gas on the rumor fire.

And at this point, prediction market apps have tagged Donald with a better than 50% chance of playing this season.

🐏 Will Aaron Donald Unretire? Odds for Donald to make a comeback 

⚡ The Myles Garrett effect

The Rams continue to lean into their "F them picks" mantra, and after coming up short in the NFL playoffs and watching divisional rival Seattle Seahawks hoist the Lombardi Trophy, Les Snead and Sean McVay made their splashiest move since trading for Matthew Stafford.

With the Rams sending Jared Verse, a 2027 first round pick, a 2028 second round pick, and a 2029 third round pick to the Browns for Garrett, it more than confirmed they're all in now and quieted the noise surrounding them looking toward the future after selecting QB Ty Simpson 13th overall in this past April's draft.

Garrett's coming off a season in which he won his second DPOY and set the single-season sack record (23.0) while ranking No. 2 in the NFL in pass-rush win rate (24.6%) and finishing in the top 12 in pressures (84) for the sixth straight season.

So while Donald hasn't played since 2023, you can understand the appeal of teaming up with Garrett on a team that already leads the Super Bowl odds.

🤫 Will the rumors stay rumors?

Almost the moment this trade broke, social media began pondering if Donald could return to the field to join a defensive line that is arguably the best in the NFL. The idea of inserting a first-ballot Hall of Famer for 20-30 snaps per game alongside Garrett, Byron Young, Kobie Turner, Braden Fiske, and Poona Ford makes plenty of sense for both parties.

Then, of course, Schefter said Donald unretiring is "more likely than not," with Pat McAfee later stating on the Pat McAfee Show that Donald texted him "it for sure got me thinking."

And even Sean McVay chimed in and said, "If Aaron decides he wants to dust them off at the age of 35, I bet you he could still do it at a pretty high clip." Meaning the Rams are more than interested in the idea of bringing him back.

However, Donald also texted McAfee saying, "35, removed two years ago, gotta see if that fire can light back up." And Garrett said on the New Heights podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce that "I don’t want to press him because I want him to find that spark."

So for as adamant as Schefter was about Donald returning, it sounds like Donald isn't so sure himself.

❌ Final verdict: Fun speculation, but buy 'No'

It's easy to salivate over the idea of Garrett and Donald hunting QBs in Los Angeles and striking fear into every offensive line on the Rams' schedule this season. But unretiring after two years away is a big ask, and this seems more like a fun offseason storyline than something tangible.

In fact, the day after the Garrett trade, Donald's wife Erica posted on social media "Y'all are hilarious."

This isn't the first time Erica has addressed rumors around Donald returning to the gridiron, either. In 2024, she posted a video on social media of herself laughing and saying, "Aaron, the people are still asking if you are coming back," while a sleeping Donald doesn't move, before saying, "all right, guys, I hope that answers your question, ’cuz he is not."

For now, I'm not buying the idea of Donald returning to the field just because Garrett is in the City of Angels. 

Prediction: No, Aaron Donald won't play in a pro football game this season (47¢)