{"id":1008733,"date":"2026-09-23T16:33:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T16:33:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/1008733\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T16:33:16","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T16:33:16","slug":"rams-film-review-aaron-donald-makes-immediate-impact-in-return","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/1008733\/","title":{"rendered":"Rams Film Review: Aaron Donald Makes Immediate Impact in Return"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the Los Angeles Rams took the field on Monday Night Football against the New York Giants, defensive tackle Aaron Donald also made his season debut<\/a>. Donald retired following the 2023 season, but came out of retirement this offseason. While he didn\u2019t make the trip to Australia in Week 1, Donald finally put the pads on against the New York Giants.<\/p>\n

Coming into the game, it was uncertain what the Rams would get out of Donald. He hadn\u2019t played in two years and, surely, at 35 years old, he had lost a step. It was also unclear how much Donald would play. After not taking a snap in two years, it seemed unlikely that he would play 100 percent of the defensive snaps.<\/p>\n

When all was said and done, Donald played 32 snaps, which ended up being around 57 percent of the Rams\u2019 snaps on defense. That\u2019s about exactly where the Rams would have wanted him to be in his first game back.<\/p>\n

Donald played a pretty even split of run snaps and pass rush snaps.In 14 run-defense snaps, Donald had three tackles, including one for a loss. While he only had one pressure in 18 pass-rush snaps, he had a 27.8 percent pass-rush win rate. That is the highest among interior defensive linemen this season.<\/p>\n

Donald may not have shown up that much on the Rams stat sheet, but he certainly impacted the game. <\/p>\n

3rd-and-10 here and Donald’s presence inside forces an inaccurate throw from Winston. pic.twitter.com\/F5XjPNox5c<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Simply looking at the stat sheet, it seemed like Donald didn\u2019t have much of an impact. However, looking at the film and even some of the advanced stats, it was very clear that Donald was having a positive influence on the game<\/a>.<\/p>\n

During his media availability on Thursday, Donald was asked whether he expected the Giants to double-team him. Donald\u2019s response may have had a hint of sarcasm, but he said, \u201cYou think they’re going to double\/triple team me [after] not playing for two years? They ain’t worried about me, man.”<\/p>\n

Donald was double-teamed on 39 percent of his pass rush plays against the Giants. After two years away, the Giants were still very clearly concerned about what Donald could do and wanted to be prepared for it.<\/p>\n

Aaron Donald really got his hopes up and tried to tell himself that the Giants weren’t gonna double team him \ud83d\ude02 pic.twitter.com\/VSAiLacTZs<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Among defensive linemen who played at least 50 percent of their team\u2019s defensive snaps, Pro Football Focus graded Donald as the 18th-best defensive lineman in Week 2 with an overall grade of 70.3. Even if that grade does seem low, it\u2019s a good start for Donald<\/a>. Monday night was a good start. It may be clich\u00e9 to say that he\u2019s only going to get better, but at the very least, he\u2019s going to get more comfortable.<\/p>\n

Additionally, that\u2019s all the Rams really need from Donald, especially when Garrett returns. It\u2019s been said all summer that the Rams didn\u2019t necessarily need prime Donald on this defense. A 70 percent or 80 percent version of Donald would be enough. That\u2019s about what the Rams got on Monday night. However, much like his pass rush win rate, there were parts of his game that stood out and made it clear that he can still have an impact.<\/p>\n

Didn’t really know what to expect from Donald in his return after two years away. <\/p>\n

If there were any questions about whether the Rams DT had lost a step…he put those to rest. The speed was evident. Just as quick at the snap as he was when he retired. pic.twitter.com\/a6Y9ktX5L9<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Throughout his career, Donald won with his speed, and it was his \u2018superpower\u2019 in his game. On Monday night, Donald had an average get-off of 0.75 seconds. That is the third-fastest among any defensive lineman this season and is faster than Jared Verse, Maxx Crosby, and Will Anderson Jr.<\/p>\n

There were still moments in the game where you saw flashes of \u201cvintage\u201d Donald. The most evident play was in the second quarter with the Giants in the red zone. Donald won with his speed to beat the blocker off the snap to get inside and then met the ball carrier in the backfield.<\/p>\n

This was my favorite play from Aaron Donald last night for the Rams. Was vintage Donald. <\/p>\n

Beats the TE to the inside off the snap and then meets the ball carrier in the backfield. pic.twitter.com\/WFBjEOMHqL<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Again, it may not have been a dominant performance from Donald, but it was a good opportunity to knock off some of the rust and play an actual game. There were never any questions about whether Donald was in shape, but whether he could get back into football shape. Donald answered those questions on Monday night against the Giants. Donald is back, and the rest of the league should be on notice.<\/p>\n

Other NotesTerrance Ferguson Has Breakout Performance<\/p>\n

Without Puka Nacua in the lineup, the Rams needed a second pass-catcher to step up<\/a>. That player ended up being second-year tight end Terrance Ferguson. Ferguson finished with six catches for 54 yards and showed what he can do when he\u2019s a bigger part of the offensive game plan.<\/p>\n

This is a good example of what Rams TE Terrance Ferguson can do after the catch. <\/p>\n

Bad angle by the S coming down, but Ferguson created 9 yards after the catch over expected on Monday night. pic.twitter.com\/59GJoWFPQO<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

One of Ferguson\u2019s strengths is his ability to run after the catch and create explosive plays. Last year, the Rams targeted Ferguson down the field as he led tight ends in deep targets. However, against the Giants, Ferguson averaged just 6.4 air yards per target, showing off some of his versatility.<\/p>\n

Ferguson stepped right into the Nacua role in the passing game. The Rams brought him in motion across the line and had him running routes through the offensive line, similar to how they\u2019ve done with Nacua in the past.<\/p>\n

Hard not to like what you saw from Terrance Ferguson. <\/p>\n

The Rams TE had a few missed opps, but then you see a tough catch like this, and it brings you back. <\/p>\n

Ferg runs his route through the A-gap and then make a tough catch through contact. pic.twitter.com\/TQrzC6FVPm<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

On the play above, the Rams bring Ferguson in motion to almost a fullback position and then have him run a corner route out of it through the A-gap. Later in the game, he showed off some of his blocking in the run game, blocking a linebacker through the B-gap, very similar to Nacua.<\/p>\n

\u201cFerg’s a stud,\u201d said head coach Sean McVay after the game. \u201cHe\u2019s only going to keep getting better. I thought he had a great catch and run on the second down. That was a big play for us. Great catch on the play action. That was a great trigger by the safety being able to drive downhill. He\u2019s only going to get better and better.\u201d<\/p>\n

There were some missed opportunities. Ferguson was credited with one drop on a play where he didn\u2019t expect the ball to come as quickly as it did. Later in the game, Ferguson had one go through his hands, but the ball did tip off a linebacker\u2019s helmet near the line of scrimmage, changing the trajectory. However, had Ferguson caught it, he might have run all the way to Beverly Hills.<\/p>\n

These were the two missed opps from Ferguson. <\/p>\n

First one, ball is there a little quicker than he expects. Second one, the ball is tipped. <\/p>\n

If Ferg catches the second one, he might have been running all the way to Beverly Hills. pic.twitter.com\/RZVMaAW4kM<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Despite the misses, it\u2019s hard not to like what the Rams got out of Ferguson in a big moment. He stepped up in a big way, and hopefully, when Nacua returns, the Rams can continue to get him involved in the passing game.<\/p>\n

Matthew Stafford-Davante Adams Connection Shines<\/p>\n

When the Rams signed Davante Adams before the 2025 season, there was a lot of excitement about what he could do with Stafford. However, with Stafford\u2019s back injury, those two didn\u2019t get the reps that they would have gotten in a normal offseason.<\/p>\n

Stafford and Adams still had a great year. Adams led the NFL in touchdowns, and the two were almost unstoppable in the red zone. With that said, between the 20s, it took almost half the year for them to get on the same page. Even then, they were still off at times.<\/p>\n

Davante Adams talked this offseason how he and Stafford are ahead of where they were at this time last year. <\/p>\n

Plays like this exemplify that. It takes two players on the same page to complete this throw along the sideline. this is stuff Adams was doing with Rodgers. pic.twitter.com\/PPOBoyAIPP<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Adams talked a lot during training camp<\/a> about how he and Stafford were so much further ahead than they were at that time last year. Adams\u2019 eight-catch, 195-yard performance made that evident. There was no play that exemplified that more than Stafford\u2019s throw to Adams along the sideline in the third quarter. That\u2019s a throw that takes a lot of work, as the quarterback has to know exactly where the receiver wants it.<\/p>\n

It also shows how Adams is playing at such a high level at 33 years old. Adams became the fourth-oldest player in NFL history to have 195 yards and two or more receiving touchdowns in a single game.<\/p>\n

Davante Adams is 33 years old and he’s still our here absolutely breaking ankles with his route-running. <\/p>\n

The Rams WR gets safety Tyler Nubin turned around before picking up 64 yards. pic.twitter.com\/6pvr1Bw95A<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a>Chris Shula Calls a More Creative Game<\/p>\n

Prior to the Monday night’s game against the Giants, defensive coordinator Chris Shula took a lot of criticism<\/a> for how he called the game against the San Francisco 49ers. There were some reasons for that, but the Rams played off the line of scrimmage and more zone coverage than some would have liked. <\/p>\n

That shifted drastically in Week 2. After blitzing at around a 19 percent rate in Week 1, that was up to 38 percent in Week 2. A lot of that was because the Rams stopped the run and forced the Giants to be one-dimensional, but it was still a good improvement. Shula was much more creative with his pass rush plans. <\/p>\n

Additionally, it was nice to see Trent McDuffie have a good game. While he had an interception, his most impressive play may have been the pass breakup deep down the field while covering Malik Nabers. McDuffie never panicked and was able to force an incompletion. That wouldn’t have been the case at times last year. <\/p>\n

This play encapsulates everything that was right with the Rams defense yesterday. <\/p>\n

You have a creative blitz from Shula. Lake comes in from second level, Turner drops back…have Watson blitzing on a delay. <\/p>\n

Winston goes deep to Nabers and there is no panic from McDuffie. pic.twitter.com\/5I7zG7wSsW<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Blaine Grisak (@BGMediaOnSI) September 23, 2026<\/a>\"\"Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow<\/a>