'Freakazoid': Lineman Reveals What it's Like to Block Rams Star Aaron Donald

Donald has wrecked NFC West offensive lines countless times over his eight-year career

Author:
Zach Dimmitt
Publish date:
Apr 16, 2022 1:30 PM EDT

The dominant and decorated career of Los Angeles Rams star Aaron Donald has come at the expense of many opposing offensive linemen who have had to deal with arguably the toughest blocking assignment in the NFL.

Donald's muscular 6-1, 280-pound frame is enough to make offenses sweat before stepping on the field. And apparently, his freakish ability to rush the quarterback has still left former NFL offensive lineman with nightmarish tales on matching up with him helmet-to-helmet.

Aaron Donald

Former Arizona Cardinals center A.Q. Shipley was a special guest on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Thursday and recalled the times he's had to face Donald and the Rams. As a member of the Cardinals from 2016 to 2019, Shipley got his fair share of Donald twice a season as an NFC West rival.

A.Q. Shipley

“If you had my wife on this show, she would tell you what the Saturday before playing Aaron Donald was like,” Shipley said. “I mean, if you walked in the room and talk about positive, it was, ‘Get the **** out of the room.’ I need to sit here and just focus right now. I need to figure out how to stop this Freakazoid for the next 60 minutes tomorrow.”

A.Q. Shipley

A.Q. Shipley, the former Arizona Cardinals blocker, went into detail about what makes Donald such a "nightmare matchup", saying his technique at the line of scrimmage is unlike any other pass rusher he's gone up against.

“He’s one of the few people that if you really break down defensive linemen when they do their move to work an edge, they always kind of stop their feet and then get going again,” Shipley said. “He’s the only guy I’ve ever seen that when he starts working edges, his feet are still moving forward. So it’s a completely different animal when you watch him.”

Aaron Donald

Donald's resume, which now includes a Super Bowl ring, is one that will only continue to grow after he officially announced his return to the Rams earlier this month. The seven-time All-Pro selection and eight-time Pro-Bowler was mulling retirement after LA's Super Bowl win over the Bengals in February.

Aaron Donald

Now, he'll rejoin a defense that added former Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner to the fold on March 31 in a five-year, $50 million deal. The Hall-of-Fame tandem will be a force to be reckoned with this upcoming season.

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