Rams can’t afford to risk Aaron Donald skipping training camp over contract situation

The Los Angeles Rams seem hopeful about working out a new contract for defensive superstar Aaron Donald.

It’s been a busy offseason for the Los Angeles Rams when considering all of the big moves ranging from hiring Sean McVay as the youngest head coach in NFL history to providing Jared Goff with more weapons to work with in the passing game. However, the argument can be made that no move could end up having a bigger impact than Aaron Donald potentially missing the start of training camp over his contract situation.

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Before getting into details, let the record show that Donald hasn’t officially said anything about the possibility of skipping camp, and everything is simply speculation at this point in the offseason. For months, Les Snead has led Rams fans to believe that a new deal for the former first-round pick would eventually work itself out, but with the start of training camp a few weeks away, it’s difficult not to at least be a little worried when it comes to Donald.

Expectations are somewhat high for Los Angeles heading into the 2017 season after only winning four games all of last year, and Donald’s presence will certainly give the defense a chance to rank near the top of the league. Despite all of the struggles the Rams have experienced over the years, Donald has been one of the few positives from the last three seasons, and seeing him come off a 2016 season in which he led the league with 31 quarterback hits shows how special he truly is.

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As crazy as it sounds, there are plenty of fans who believe Donald deserves strong consideration for being the league’s highest defensive player. Only time will tell when it comes to whether the two parties will work out a deal before training camp officially gets underway a few weeks from now, but hopefully the Rams are smart enough to realize the possibility of Donald being unhappy and holding out is something they can’t afford to see happen.