Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald is widely regarded as one of the best interior lineman in the league. So it should come as no surprise that the Pittsburgh product recorded another dominant performance in the Rams' Wild Card loss to the Falcons.
He was given the highest grade of any player at any position by Pro Football Focus with a 98.6 overall grade.
And though it was a solid effort by the entire Rams defense, Donald shined as a central figure on the line — finishing the game with 11 quarterback pressures and posting a pass-rush productivity rating of 25.0.
He also notched a league-leading 13 impact plays during the contest. An impact play is defined as a quarterback hurry, quarterback hit, quarterback sack or a defensive stop. But the impressive performance was not unique for the defensive tackle.
Throughout the season, Donald has been an offensive game wrecker upfront. He finished the year with a team-leading 16 tackles for loss, 11.0 sacks, 27 quarterback hits, and five forced fumbles.
And for his incredible campaign, PFF gave him an overall season grade of 99.7 — an impressive finish being that the highest grade obtainable is a 99.9.
