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The Los Angeles Rams drafted a generational player when they took Pittsburgh defensive lineman Aaron Donald with the No. 13 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.
Donald put together a likely Hall-of-Fame NFL career, but he was also one of the best college players of the past 25 seasons, according to The Athletic‘s Bruce Feldman. Feldman ranked Donald the No. 20 player on his top-25 college players since 2000 list.
“Everything Donald was doing in the NFL for the Rams he first did for Pitt,” Feldman wrote. “He had at least 16 tackles for loss in three consecutive seasons, capping his career by winning just about every college award a D-lineman can get in 2013: the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Chuck Bednarik Award, Outland Trophy and the Lombardi Award.
“‘His production was off the charts,’ said NFL Network’s Bucky Brooks, a former NFL scout. ‘It was ridiculous for a D-tackle to have that kind of stuff. He dominated.’
“In all, his 67 tackles for loss lead all defensive tackles in the 2000s.”
Donald finished his collegiate career with 29.5 sacks, 67 tackles for a loss and six forced fumbles. Those are impressive numbers over just 51 games, but they paled in comparison to his NFL production.
Donald totaled 111 sacks, 176 tackles for a loss and 24 forced fumbles in 154 career games over 10 seasons. His work led to a Pro Bowl selection in all 10 seasons as well as eight first-time All-Pro teams and three Defensive Player of the Year awards.
While this was a college-only list, Donald proved that his production at that level led directly to his NFL dominance.
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