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Rams to begin offseason program with Aaron Donald’s contract situation unsettled
Los Angeles Rams defensive end Aaron Donald as the Atlanta Falcons defeated the Los Angeles Rams 26-13 during a Wild Card NFL football playoff game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, Jan. 06, 2018 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
By RICH HAMMOND | rhammond@scng.com | Orange County Register
April 15, 2018 at 4:12 pm
The new-look Rams, brought together during a series of major roster moves over the past two months, will be under the same roof Monday morning. Most of them will be, anyway.
The Rams’ offseason program will begin Monday, and the first two weeks are limited by the NFL to conditioning and rehabilitation work. The entire two-month program is optional, and at least one of the Rams’ top players, defensive lineman Aaron Donald, is not expected to participate at the start.
Donald, last season’s NFL Defensive Player of the Year, remains in search of a new contract. Donald has entered the fifth and final year of his rookie contract, but for more than a year, he has sought a new contract with the Rams, who periodically have talked with his agent but have not reached a deal.
Players cannot be disciplined for skipping the optional part of the offseason program, but they can be fined if they miss a mandatory mini-camp at the end. The Rams’ mini-camp is scheduled for mid-June.
Donald sat out most of last year’s offseason program and also held out for the entirety of training camp. He returned to the Rams shortly before the start of the season and missed the first regular-season game, but then turned in a dominant season and helped the Rams win 11 games and a division title.
General Manager Les Snead recently said that he expects Donald to become the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL, which would mean a significant increase of his $6.9 million salary for 2018.
Donald’s absence from optional workouts wouldn’t be a dramatic negative for the Rams, given that Donald is known for his fierce workouts when he is away from the team, and because he’s already familiar with the scheme of defensive coordinator Wade Phillips.
Donald will, at some point, have to adjust to playing next to one of the Rams’ new additions, defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh, as part of a new-look defense.
The Rams imported Suh and cornerbacks Marcus Peters, Aqib Talib and Sam Shields, and traded two of their team captains and starting linebackers, Alec Ogletree and Robert Quinn. The Rams’ offense returns mostly intact, other than a swap of receivers, with former New England Patriots deep threat Brandin Cooks in and Sammy Watkins out.
[www.ocregister.com]
Los Angeles Rams defensive end Aaron Donald as the Atlanta Falcons defeated the Los Angeles Rams 26-13 during a Wild Card NFL football playoff game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, Jan. 06, 2018 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
By RICH HAMMOND | rhammond@scng.com | Orange County Register
April 15, 2018 at 4:12 pm
The new-look Rams, brought together during a series of major roster moves over the past two months, will be under the same roof Monday morning. Most of them will be, anyway.
The Rams’ offseason program will begin Monday, and the first two weeks are limited by the NFL to conditioning and rehabilitation work. The entire two-month program is optional, and at least one of the Rams’ top players, defensive lineman Aaron Donald, is not expected to participate at the start.
Donald, last season’s NFL Defensive Player of the Year, remains in search of a new contract. Donald has entered the fifth and final year of his rookie contract, but for more than a year, he has sought a new contract with the Rams, who periodically have talked with his agent but have not reached a deal.
Players cannot be disciplined for skipping the optional part of the offseason program, but they can be fined if they miss a mandatory mini-camp at the end. The Rams’ mini-camp is scheduled for mid-June.
Donald sat out most of last year’s offseason program and also held out for the entirety of training camp. He returned to the Rams shortly before the start of the season and missed the first regular-season game, but then turned in a dominant season and helped the Rams win 11 games and a division title.
General Manager Les Snead recently said that he expects Donald to become the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL, which would mean a significant increase of his $6.9 million salary for 2018.
Donald’s absence from optional workouts wouldn’t be a dramatic negative for the Rams, given that Donald is known for his fierce workouts when he is away from the team, and because he’s already familiar with the scheme of defensive coordinator Wade Phillips.
Donald will, at some point, have to adjust to playing next to one of the Rams’ new additions, defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh, as part of a new-look defense.
The Rams imported Suh and cornerbacks Marcus Peters, Aqib Talib and Sam Shields, and traded two of their team captains and starting linebackers, Alec Ogletree and Robert Quinn. The Rams’ offense returns mostly intact, other than a swap of receivers, with former New England Patriots deep threat Brandin Cooks in and Sammy Watkins out.
[www.ocregister.com]
