Aaron Donald on pace to surpass J.J. Watt ... really

[biggame1190]

http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/insider/story/_/id/13718089/aaron-donald-pace-surpass-jj-watt-nfl

If I were to tell you St. Louis Rams DT Aaron Donald is playing well right now, I wouldn't be breaking the kind of news that interrupts television broadcasts. So what if I told you Donald is outperforming J.J. Watt, and is not only ahead of Watt for 2015 -- I know, two whole games -- but is also out in front of Watt at the same point in their respective careers?

Through two games, Donald is on pace to not just surpass, but crush the best grade we have ever seen from a defensive interior player -- and cruise right on past the best performance PFF has ever seen from any player over a single season.

Watt is the only player to have topped triple digits in PFF grade over a full season, and the only one to really be close to the mark. While positions at PFF are not exactly comparable in grading terms because of the different normalizations at work at each spot, the two positions that do share the same normalization factor are defensive tackle and 3-4 defensive end.

Through two games Donald has a plus-18.0 grade. This is more than double the best mark any defensive tackle has posted through two games. The highest grade Watt has ever had at this point in a season is a plus-17.3, and his average career grade after two games is plus-9.1 -- a very good mark but half the grade Donald has just achieved, and more in line with the best DT grade we had seen through two weeks prior to this year.

 

[RAGRam]

Yeah, but is he too good?

 

[RamBill]

Mike Tomlin sees greatness in Rams' hard-working Aaron Donald
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...n-sees-greatness-in-hard-working-aaron-donald

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- Speaking to St. Louis media on Wednesday afternoon, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin had already showered St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald with praise when he was asked about the greatness of one of his players, receiver Antonio Brown.

Tomlin shifted back to Donald to make a point about Brown.

"He works like Aaron Donald," Tomlin said. "When I think about both guys, they’re better workers than players, and that’s saying something when you’re the type of players that both men are. I described Aaron in that way yesterday when our local guys asked about him. I said, 'He works like Antonio Brown.' I think that’s the common tie that I see when I think about those guys."

It's something of a cliche to talk about a player who is the first in the building and the last to leave, but Donald has been that for the Rams since he arrived in 2014. He's been known to beat the early arriving coaching staff to the building on occasion and is always in the meeting room when defensive coordinator Gregg Williams walks in.

That dedication and devotion to his craft is something Tomlin hasn't just admired from afar. Donald went to the University of Pittsburgh and goes back to train there in the offseason. The Panthers and Steelers share a facility, and even when the NFL isn't in season, Donald is still beating coaches to work, even leaders of other teams.

"He’s just a ridiculous worker," Tomlin said. "I was in this past winter, it was a week after the Pro Bowl and I saw him in that parking lot every morning because he was coming over to get his work like he normally does at the University of Pittsburgh. I saw him just about every morning in February when a lot of guys are on beaches and vacationing, this guy was getting out of his car at 6:30 in the morning to work out. That’s not out of character based on the things that I know about him."

Regardless of outcome, it's clear Donald has a fan in the coach who will man the opposing sideline on Sunday.

"Aaron Donald, besides being a special player, is a special man," Tomlin said. "I’ve gotten to know him over the years being a neighbor over here at Pitt. Just to watch what he’s willing to do is as or more impressive than he’s capable of doing."

 

[TheBunk]

Tomlin is not one feign respect or appreciation. That's cool to hear.

 

[Dxmissile]

Coach Tomlin is awesome and he reminds me of Omar Epps from love and basketball