Los Angeles Rams defensive Aaron Donald ended his lengthy holdout on Saturday, and the team is not going to penalize him for skipping all of its offseason program and training camp.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the Rams waived $1.49 million in fines when Donald passed his physical and rejoined the team. Donald would have risked forfeiting weekly game checks of $106,014 if he missed any regular season games, and it’s possible the Rams would have made him pay the fines if he chose to go that route.
Donald, who has recorded 28 sacks in his first three seasons, is one of the best interior defensive linemen in football. He is scheduled to make $1.8 million in 2017 and $6.9 million next season after the Rams picked up the fifth-year option on his rookie deal. Donald’s decision to end his holdout could indicate that some progress was made in long-term contract negotiations.
Donald will not play in Sunday’s opener against the Indianapolis Colts but could be ready to go for Week 2.
