Aaron Donald sits out practice: Rams admit returning star might not play Week 1 in Australia

A day after officially coming out of retirement, Donald missed Monday's practice and his Week 1 status remains unclear Sep 1, 2026 at 10:21 am ET • 3 min read Aaron Donald has only been back with the Los Angeles Rams for two days, and he's already missed his first practice. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year practiced on Sunday after officially announcing his return, but he sat out Monday's session and there's a chance that he might not be on the field for the Rams' season opener in Australia against the San Francisco 49ers. Rams coach Sean McVay said that the team is trying to ease Donald back into action, which is why the defensive tackle didn't practice on Monday. "Aaron not being out there was part of the plan all along, so that was par for the course," McVay said after practice. Donald spent the past two months working out on his own, but the 35-year-old is still working his way into football shape, which is why the Rams are still trying to figure out how much he can handle right now. "I know it is annoying as hell just saying, 'We're taking it a day at a time.' But it is a unique thing," McVay said. "This has never been done before. I think him being able to help guide us and then being able to trust [Senior Vice President of Sports Medicine and Performance Reggie Scott] and what we think is best for the ramp up is what we're going to do."Why Donald might miss the openerWith Donald sitting out practice, McVay was asked about the possibility of the defensive tackle missing the opener and the Rams coach admitted that could happen. "Oh, yeah, absolutely. That could be a possibility," McVay said of Donald not playing in Week 1. "I wouldn't rule anything out yet. I think sometimes when you put unnecessary parameters or guidelines on something it can skew things." The Rams will be heading to Melbourne, Australia, at some point next week, and the team will likely want to make a decision on his status before they get on the plane so Donald doesn't take an unnecessary 15-hour flight if he's not going to be active. "If he's not ready and that is not what is best for him and for the team, absolutely wouldn't have him play in Australia unnecessarily," McVay said. The Rams coach said the team wants to see Donald on the practice field before making any decisions about Week 1. Donald spent the past two years in retirement and hasn't played in an NFL game since January 2024. "The first step was, 'all right, if you're coming back let us do that, let us get you out on the practice field,'" McVay said Sunday. "'Let us get you acclimated to your teammates to your coaches,' and then we'll see what that ramp up period looks like whether or not he is available or whether or not we think it is best to be able to play him in Australia."As for Donald, he was also non-committal about playing in Week 1. "I need to be at the level that I want to play at and that's all I can do," Donald said Sunday. "Ain't rushing [anything]. Like I said, just continue to stack them days and see where we [are] at."Donald's revised contract with the Rams seems to take into account the fact that he might not be out on the field in Week 1. The 10-time Pro Bowler signed a one-year, $30 million deal that includes $10 million in bonus money that's tied to whether he's on the active roster each week. That specific bonus will pay out at a rate of $666,667 per game for a maximum of 15 games, so if Donald misses Week 1 or sits out Week 18 because the Rams are resting their starters, it won't impact his ability to make the full $10 million in bonus money. Donald's Week 1 status seems to be genuinely up in the air, and the Rams will have to make a decision soon. The 49ers are leaving for Australia on Sept. 2, but the Rams won't be leaving until next week, so McVay and Donald will have a few more days to decide if he's ready enough to play.