Aaron Donald NFL comeback could be halted by one key factor: Rams legend

STATELINE, Nev. — If Aaron Donald is truly interested in returning to the Rams, one of his former teammates said the future Hall of Famer must weigh one very important factor.

During an exclusive interview with The California Post at the American Century Championship in Nevada, Andrew Whitworth said if Donald is OK with potentially suffering some kind of injury or ailment on a football field again, he could certainly see the defensive tackle re-signing with Los Angeles this offseason.

“I think it’s going to be how comfortable he is with going back out there and understanding not the positive, but the negative,” ex-Rams left tackle said. “And that is you get injured. Injuries, things that affect you past football. It’s going to be how comfortable he is with that.”

Whitworth and Donald played five seasons together in LA and won one Super Bowl, and the two have remained friends in retirement.

Whitworth — who’s hosting a camp with Donald later this month — said he actually recently spoke with Donald about a comeback, and he confirmed the 35-year-old who retired following the 2023 season “definitely” has “a pique of interest” in donning a Rams helmet once more.

However, Whitworth said he’s sure how Donald’s body feels will be the ultimate deciding factor.

“Aaron’s a guy like me,” Whitworth said. “He’s training all the time no matter what. You know when you go in there a few days how you feel and whether that’s every day life feel good, or I could sign up to play football.

“But only he will know that.”

Whitworth was once in Donald’s current shoes — after he called it a career following the 2021 season, he considered a comeback.

But he told The Post on Wednesday he just couldn’t risk getting injured again.

“I played as long as I could possibly play,” Whitworth said. “And then at 41, 42, when there was a couple inklings — ‘Would you come? Would you?’ Yeah, but man, at this age and as long I’ve played, an injury that affects the rest of my life is probably not worth it.”

Whitworth, though, then added, “I can say this, if I was 35, just speaking for me, there’s no question I’d be back. If you told me the Rams only void was at left tackle, at 35, I would do everything possible to see if I could do it.”