Aaron Donald first NFL player to sign on with Ye’s Donda Sports

The LA Rams are working towards the financial security of All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald. But, at the same time, that just happens to be what Aaron Donald is working towards as well. And the two separate tracks may not lead to the same point. Will that complicate the efforts of the LA Rams to extend Aaron Donald? We don’t know that. So what do we know?

We know that the topic of Aaron Donald’s retirement has been a rather out-of-left-field sort of NFL topic ever since the Super Bowl. But the more my mind has tried to stamp this one out and rationalize that it will never happen, the more this topic seems to spring up once more. We know a few more things as well:

We know that the LA Rams are fully aware of Aaron Donald’s state of mind. He has just been a significant factor in winning Super Bowl LVI with the Rams. Now? He wants to be paid and to do that, he wants a new contract.

We know that  ESPN Jeremy Fowler reported (subscription required):

"“Keep in mind that the retirement buzz around Donald — first delivered by NBC’s Rodney Harrison on the Super Bowl pregame broadcast — was always real. And it’s my understanding that Donald has a number he will play for. If it’s not met, retirement can still go down. Adding years to an already existing three-year pact takes Donald well into his mid-30s, and who knows whether he wants to play that long? But that’s the best way for Los Angeles to stretch out the money for cap purposes.” – As per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler"

So the LA Rams are not actually in much of negotiations with Donald’s representation. It’s more like they are themselves being put to the test to pull off this extension.

We know that LA Rams head coach Sean McVay is fully appraised of the situation, is in contact with Aaron Donald, and that McVay knows just how important it is for the team to get AD back on the field.

So there’s that.

We know that LA Rams GM Les Snead is working hard to get an extension into Aaron Donald’s hands and signed.  But we have yet to see any evidence of concrete progress.

And now we know that Aaron Donald has signed on with Kanye West’s Donda Sports. So what does that mean for Aaron Donald and the LA Rams exactly?

There is the NFL, and then there is a life beyond the NFL. Defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s incentive to sign with Donda Sports is certainly a step to exploring all of the options available to him in life beyond the NFL.

"“I think it’s a helluva opportunity to open up a lot of different doors and a lot of different things outside of football that I wanna be involved in, that I wanna do, that my wife wanna do. So to be a part of that, and be one of the best first athletes to be a part of that, it’s pretty dope. We’re excited about it, and we’re gonna see where this thing goes.” – per Aaron Donald in the above video"

So now we know that we have one of the faces of the NFL, Aaron Donald, and his wife Erica Donald, signing aboard the new Donda Sports.

How extensive will Donda Sports represent Aaron Donald? While that remains to be determined, the terrain could cover a host of areas including apparel, endorsements, sports representation, publicist, and more.

So what does this mean for the LA Rams? We don’t know, but Donda Sports clearly has the wherewithal to offer life after the NFL. Aaron Donald clearly has one eye on the life-after-football chapter now.

And so, as is often the case when it comes to the LA Rams.

The plot thickens…