Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald isn’t the highest-paid defensive player in the league anymore, but he is the owner of a handsome new contract that comes with high expectations for how he will perform in the years to come.
While Donald was making a guest appearance on Sirius XM NFL Radio, he was asked if he felt increased pressure to reach those expectations as a result of the new contract. Donald said he did feel that way, but also felt more motivated than he did before signing the deal.
“You could say that,” Donald said. “I feel like if I say it wouldn’t then I’d be lying. Mr. [Stan] Kroenke invested into me. I feel like I’m that type of player to help the organization. If anything, it just motivated me to work even harder. I just don’t want to let them down. I’m watching film right now. So, it just make you want to work even that much harder. So just work, continue to grind and lead by example. The way I work, you catch on and get this thing going.”
One would imagine the Rams don’t harbor any fears that Donald will either slack off or crumble under the weight of his new deal. They’ll get their first chance to see a return on their investment on Monday night against the Raiders.