Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald may be this generation's greatest defensive player, which can do nothing but frighten Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll on the two teams' upcoming Week 5 matchup.
The Seahawks coach called the back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year a “dominant” factor ahead of their Thursday night clash in Seattle (via NBC Sports Northwest's Joe Fann on Twitter):
“He's as dominant a factor as you can get.”
Pete Carroll said that you have to gameplan for Aaron Donald more than any other defensive player in the NFL:
"He's as dominant a factor as you can get."
— Joe Fann (@Joe_Fann) September 30, 2019
Last season in their two meetings, the 28-year-old Donald amassed 3.5 sacks, six combined tackles, four tackles for loss, and six quarterback hits, with the Rams defeating the Seahawks in both instances by a combined total of seven points.
One of Carroll's main objectives preparing against Donald and the Rams on Thursday is protecting star quarterback Russell Wilson, who is an early season MVP candidate with his strong play through four weeks. Both the Seahawks and Rams stand at 3-1, so add in the divisional aspect and Thursday should be a critical tilt between the two clubs seeking an edge in the NFC West race behind the San Francisco 49ers, who had a bye week last weekend.
Donald is a five-time Pro-Bowl defensive tackle coming off two consecutive Defensive Player of the Year wins. He was the 2014 Defensive Rookie of the Year after the then–St. Louis Rams selected the Pittsburgh product with the 13th overall pick in that year's draft class. Donald has gone on to dominate the league since his arrival, including recording 20.5 sacks in 16 games last season.
Regardless, Carroll and Seattle will have their hands full of Donald on Thursday.
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