Aaron Donald on Rams’ closing in on 1st division title in 14 years: ‘This is what you grind for’

Aaron Donald is in his fourth season with the Rams.

Even while establishing himself as one of the top defensive linemen in the NFL, during two years in St. Louis and the Rams’ first in Los Angeles, he experienced plenty of lean times.

‘It’s a whole different feeling in this locker room’

Now, with the Rams on the verge of clinching their first NFC West championship in 14 years after Sunday’s 42-7 pounding of the Seattle Seahawks, Donald is savoring the good times.

“Ah, it’s a whole different feeling in this locker room for sure,” Donald told Zig Fracassi on NFL Rewind. “This is what you grind for, this is what you work for, to have winning seasons like this and get to soak it all in when you win. So just enjoying the ride and continue to do what we’ve got to do and going week to week.”

‘Shout out to the secondary for giving us opportunity by making the quarterback reset’

What the Rams did against the Seahawks was dominate in every phase. The offense scored on six of its first seven possessions. The defense limited Seattle to a mere 149 total yards. Russell Wilson threw for 142 yards and a touchdown, but was sacked seven times.

“I think we just did a good job of bottling him up,” Donald said. “Shout out to the secondary for giving us opportunity by making the quarterback reset and giving us opportunity to get him down.

‘The coaches just gave us a great game plan’

“I think the coaches just gave us a great game plan this week and we just executed the right way. Anytime you’ve got a secondary that’s playing top-notch football and helping us as far as when a quarterback reads, he takes one read, he’s got to reset; another read, he’s got to reset. We’ve got an opportunity to get him to the ground.”

Todd Gurley led the Rams’ offense by rushing for 152 yards and three touchdowns, and also catching a TD pass. Donald believes the running back should be recognized for the accomplishment.

‘(Gurley’s) showing an MVP-type year’

“MVP, man, MVP,” Donald said. “He’s just having a great year, had a great game. He’s going to continue. He’s just showing an MVP-type year and I feel like he’s just one of the guys they should talk about and definitely be a candidate for that.”