Star defensive tackle Aaron Donald sent shockwaves through the NFL when he announced his retirement from the sport earlier this month. Donald may have put a bow on his legendary 10-year career with the Los Angeles Rams, but that may not stop others from recruiting him.
During the most recent episode of the “New Heights” podcast, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce began his recruitment of the star defensive lineman if he was interested in earning another Super Bowl ring.
“Shoutout to AD. Unbelievable career,” Kelce said. “If you want to win one more Super Bowl, we’ll probably have some availability somewhere in December.”
Donald was able to secure a Super Bowl ring when the Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. Even with that championship victory, the Rams star chose to come back for two more seasons.
Donald made it clear that he wasn’t interested in playing any longer when he announced his retirement, so Kelce’s sales pitch might not work.
“I’m complete. I’m full,” Donald said in an interview following his announcement. “I think the passion to play the game is no longer there for me. I will always love football, but to think about going through another camp and another 17 seasons, I just don’t have the urge to want to push myself to do that anymore. I’m just, I’m burned out. The best way to say that is I’m full, I’m complete, I’m satisfied with what I was able to do in 10 years… it’s time to move on.”
If the Chiefs came calling later in the season, could there be interest for Donald to come out of retirement? That remains to be seen, but it’s hard to blame Kelce for trying to get all the help that he can as Kansas City chases a third consecutive Super Bowl.