Aaron Donald will not play against the 49ers

Published September 8, 2026 04:09 PM Aaron Donald’s return to the Rams lineup will have to wait until at least Week 2. Head coach Sean McVay announced on Tuesday that Donald will not travel with the team to Australia and will not play against the 49ers. The defensive tackle came out of retirement at the end of the summer and his status for the opener has been a major topic of discussion around the team over the last two weeks. McVay said earlier in the week that all players were expected to travel, but there’s not much reason to have Donald make the trip to Melbourne in order to be a spectator when he could work on ramping back up after three years out of the game. The Rams will have 11 days between the 49ers game and a Monday night home game against the Giants in Week 2. The hope will be that is enough time for Donald to feel set to make his return to the defensive line in Los Angeles.