But… does he want to play anymore?

Before Super Bowl 56, NBC’s Rodney Harrison suggested that Donald is mulling retirement, despite still clearly very much in his prime, but in feature from Greg Bishop in Sports Illustrated published on Wednesday, the edge rusher shed some light on his headspace, and why he appears to be considering retiring on top.

From SI: 

At 30, Donald has a lot left in the tank, and after the Super Bowl, Donald was dodgy about retirement questions. He said in no uncertain terms that he would come back if the Rams brought back Von Miller and Odell Beckham Jr., but a feature from Greg Bishop in Sports Illustrated published on Wednesday shed some light on Donald’s headspace, and why he appears to be considering retiring on top.

Harrison shared that sentiment on national television before the game, but Donald didn’t find out until afterward, when reporters asked him about it. “I wouldn’t expect [Harrison] to do something like that,” Donald says. “I wouldn’t want him to.” Notice what he didn’t say: that Harrison was wrong.

“When I came home, I just wasn’t myself,” Donald told Bishop. “If my kids’ situation is not in order, my world is not in order. Honestly, it has always been about [them].”

MORE: ‘Run it back’: Aaron Donald appears to shrug off retirement talk during Rams Super Bowl parade 

Should Donald decide to return, the Rams are going to have some work to do. If Beckham and Miller are the lynchpins keeping Donald in Los Angeles, they’ll have to sign him while also potentially restructuring Donald’s contract. Rams general manager Les Snead explicitly said he isn’t “buying” Donald’s retirement talk, which means that he has to treat things as business as usual rather than waiting on Donald to make a choice.

Donald is already 63rd in NFL history with 98 sacks, and if he returns for another season he’ll inevitably hit 100. Some notable names he could pass with a good season next year are Charles Haley (100.5), J.J. Watt (102), Kevin Carter (104.5), and Randy White (111) (not to be confused with Reggie White, who has 198 sacks). Donald would be the biggest name to abruptly retire since Andrew Luck did so in 2019.

MORE: Rams’ Sean McVay predicted Aaron Donald’s Super Bowl-winning play in mic’d up moment 

Given the physical nature of the position he plays, Donald retiring can’t be completely ruled out. Bishop paints a picture of a player who is very conflicted.

The living Rams legend doesn’t talk much about personal accolades. But if those matter to him at all, he could have a long way to go. Donald’s record book potential is limitless, but for the time being, he seems to be emphasizing enjoying his Super Bowl win and letting the rest fall into place.