Aaron Donald, Jared Goff Exchanged Texts Ahead of Rams-Lions Playoff Bout

The two former teammates went back and forth leading up to Sunday’s game.

When the Detroit Lions host the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night, quarterback Jared Goff will face his former team for just the second time since being traded in January 2021.

Although the Rams have turned their roster over a bit in the past three years, Goff still has some former teammates on the other side, including star defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

While speaking with the media on Friday, Donald revealed that he and Goff exchanged text messages this week before they play.

“I just told him I was proud of him, what they’ve been accomplishing and what he’d been doing,” Donald said, via Rams Wire. “I said, ‘I’ll see you Sunday night.’ He said, ‘Appreciate you, brother. I’ll see you Sunday night.’ It’s going to be fun.”

Former teammates Aaron Donald and Jared will face off when the Lions host the Rams on Sunday :: Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today network

The last time these two teams played, the Rams beat the Lions at home in 2021, as Los Angeles was on its way to a Super Bowl title while Detroit finished the season with just three wins. Since then, the Lions have been on the upswing, and the Rams have had to rebuild on the fly.

Donald and Goff still have a good relationship, as the two accomplished a lot together—including an NFC championship in 2019. The defensive tackle made sure to tell his former teammate how much he respects how he’s played in Detroit.

“I was really just texting him because I’m proud of what they accomplished, man,” Donald said. “He was here, helped us do some great things and then to go to Detroit, help build that back to where they’re at the day and all the success they’ve been having definitely this season. Just proud of him.” 

The Rams and Lions will kickoff their wild-card matchup Sunday night at 8:15 p.m. ET on NBC.