Rams Free Up Cap Space With Aaron Donald Contract Restructure

The Los Angeles Rams have gained much greater salary cap flexibility after restructuring the contract of star defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

The Los Angeles Rams opened up $9.2 million of cap space on Friday morning by restructuring the contract of star defensive tackle Aaron Donald, per Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap.

Before the restructure, Donald carried a cap hit of around $34.2 million, second-highest on the team only behind quarterback Matthew Stafford. Now, though, that cap hit has been lowered to just under $25 million for next season.

Nov 26, 2023; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald (99) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium / Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

This new restructure from Donald, in combination with the Friday restructure of offensive lineman Joe Noteboom, now gives the Rams over $17 million in additional cap space.

However, freeing up cap space in 2024 means kicking the can down the road. In this case, Donald will now carry a massive cap hit of $38.5 million in 2025.

Restructures usually mean that a player will be back for the upcoming season, but like throughout much of his career, Donald broke the mold. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year shockingly announced his retirement on Friday morning, sending shockwaves across the NFL world.

Rams Les Snead Uncertain of Aaron Donald Future?

According to Over the Cap, the Rams now have $27.42 million in cap space to work with, although that number does not include the new additions of Colby Parkinson, Kamren Curl and Darious Williams. They can also gain even more cap space by restructuring the contracts of Stafford and receiver Cooper Kupp, but it remains to be seen if they will take advantage of that opportunity.