The Rams are proceeding with camp without star defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who is staying away as they talk about a new contract.
But Donald isn’t sitting back and resting, and one of his teammates said the absence is bothering him.
“Oh yeah, it’s killing him right now,” Rams lineman Michael Brockers said, via Rich Hammond of the Los Angeles Daily News. “I know it is. He cannot wait until this contract thing is over. … You text him just to check in, and he lets us know that he’s still working and stuff like that. We know he’s not letting off in any way. We know he’s going to come back in shape and be the same Aaron he was before.”
But unlike some other situations in which teammates put (sometimes) subtle pressure on guys to show up for camp, Donald’s co-workers seem supportive of his efforts. When one fan showed up at camp with a picture of Donald and the words “pay the man,” pass-rusher Robert Quinn signed it. And having gone through his own negotiation recently, Brockers knows that business happens at its own pace sometimes.
“It’s hard to not do that when a guy has put in so much work,” Brockers said. “He has worked so hard and been tremendous for this team. It’s hard not to want that for him. So yeah, we’re right with him and we support him. We’re just waiting for him to get back.”
And when he does return, he’s likely to be very, very rich.