Rams News: Former Teammate Knew Aaron Donald Was a Hall of Famer by Day 2

Donald left a mark on his veteran teammate early on.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

It didn't take long for the NFL to realize that Aaron Donald was special. While Donald somehow managed to last until the No. 13 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, he put in a special rookie year. Donald racked up nine sacks, 18 tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles as a rookie to win the Defensive Rookie of the Year award, beating out players like Khalil Mack and Jadeveon Clowney for the honor.

While the league quickly picked up on the fact that Donald was incredible, one of his old teammates knew before almost anyone else. Former Ram Chris Long, who played with Donald during his first two seasons, said it took him just two days to realize that Donald was going to be a Hall of Famer.

"I knew Day 2 ... and we told the media he was going to be a Hall of Famer," Long told current Rams head coach Sean McVay on Green Light with Chris Long.

"I will never forget I was the old guy who'd walk in the meeting room at 8 o'clock after everything died down in training camp and I'd watch film," Long recalled. "Nobody else really did it ... I walked in the meeting room two or three nights in a row, nobody left in the building, [Donald was] sitting in my desk at my film projection watching film. I would kick any other rookie out, but I just watched the way he broke the game down and it was like somebody at some point taught him football ... but he came to the NFL like a pro."

As Long predicted, Donald went on to have a Hall of Fame career over the next decade and went down as one of the greatest ever on the defensive side of the ball. During his storied career, Donald won the Defensive Player of the Year award three separate times.

He led the NFL in sacks in 2018 with 20.5, an insane amount for a defensive tackle. Additionally, Donald made first-team All-Pro eight different times, was a Pro Bowler every single season of his career, and was named to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team. He added a Super Bowl championship to his resumé in 2021, capping off everything needed for a Hall of Fame career. Donald will be a no-brainer admission into Canton in five years.

More Rams: Can Rams Put Plan in Place To Replace Production of Aaron Donald?