7 LA Rams players happy to help Donald carry the load

LA Rams DL Aaron Donald faces the Divisional Round against the Packers with torn rib cartilage. These seven teammates are happy to help ease his burden

The LA Rams have a true NFL superstar in defensive lineman Aaron Donald. He rushes the passer, forces fumbles, tackles the ball carrier for a loss, and disrupts the offensive line of any team he faces. He is a one-man wrecking ball, a player whose talent level surpasses the ability of football simulation games to reflect it in their talent scale.

Donald is a perennial Pro Bowler, All-Pro defensive lineman, Madden 99 club member. He is the one player who is always located by the opposing offensive linemen. And he is regularly subject to double and triple-teaming, and sometimes he faces as many as four blockers. Yet he keeps a smile on his face, his hand in the dirt, and pressuring quarterbacks, forcing fumbles, tackling ball carriers for losses, and disrupting offensive lines.

No ribbing Donald before this game

Like all elite football players, in big games, he shows up bigger. Under bright spotlights, he shines brighter.  On the biggest stages, his performance is the easiest to pick out of the 22 football players on the field. But there is a bit of a complicating matter. You see, he suffered torn rib cartilage in the Wild Card Round against the Seattle Seahawks.

and yet, in typical Donald fashion, he will muscle through it. But if he can’t, who can he turn to?

In one of the more painful type of injuries, one that can hurt any time you breath,  Donald has been steadfast in his insistence that he will show up this Saturday for the game at Green Bay. And it could very well be that his ‘no pain-no gain’ intensity of off-season training regiment has him truly in such great shape that he does not feel much more that a minor ache.

But these are the playoffs, where the best from the Packers will push the LA Rams to need to play their best. What is the maximum output of Aaron Donald in this game? Will he be 75 percent? 80 percent? It’s not off-base to factor in that Donald may not be 100 percent. So who will make up the difference for the Rams in a crucial game? Well, seven of Donald’s teammates will be happy to help carry the load against the Packers. Who are they?