There is no debating Aaron Donald’s place among the legends in NFL history. The defensive tackle was an all-time disruptor, who at times drew as many as four offensive linemen trying to prevent him from getting to the quarterback.
Offensive linemen and quarterbacks can now rejoice. Donald’s career is headed for the history books, as he officially announced his retirement on Friday.
Cheers to what’s next. Extending a big thank you to the Rams and all of the fans for your support over these last 10 years. Much love. 🍾🙏🏽💪🏽 pic.twitter.com/edGxkUYdLz
— AD_99 (@AaronDonald97) March 15, 2024
NFL fans are going to see the words, “Hall of Famer” thrown around when talking about Donald. That’s because his career has long been ticketed for Canton. He won three Defensive Player of the Year honors and a Super Bowl ring. He earned a Pro Bowl every year of his career, and was an All-Pro in all but two of those seasons.
MORE: Sports world praises Donald as he retires
But what about the numbers behind all those honors and recognitions? Where does he rank among the all-time great defensive players in terms of his defensive stats? Here’s what you need to know.
Aaron Donald stats
| Year | Age | G | FF | FR | Sk | Comb | Solo | Ast | TFL | QB Hits |
| 2014 | 23 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 48 | 38 | 10 | 18 | 13 |
| 2015 | 24 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 69 | 44 | 25 | 22 | 37 |
| 2016 | 25 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 47 | 36 | 11 | 17 | 31 |
| 2017 | 26 | 14 | 5 | 1 | 11 | 41 | 32 | 9 | 15 | 27 |
| 2018 | 27 | 16 | 4 | 2 | 20.5 | 59 | 41 | 18 | 25 | 41 |
| 2019 | 28 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 12.5 | 48 | 29 | 19 | 20 | 24 |
| 2020 | 29 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 13.5 | 45 | 27 | 18 | 14 | 28 |
| 2021 | 30 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 12.5 | 84 | 38 | 46 | 19 | 25 |
| 2022 | 31 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 49 | 27 | 22 | 10 | 11 |
| 2023 | 32 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 53 | 28 | 25 | 16 | 23 |
| Career | Career | 154 | 24 | 7 | 111 | 543 | 340 | 203 | 176 | 260 |
Aaron Donald sacks
Sacks have not always been an official stat. The NFL only began officially tracking the number starting in 1982, though there are unofficial totals that exist.
Donald’s 111 sacks rank him 28th all-time, per ProFootballReference. However, many of the players ahead of Donald played defensive end or were other edge-rushers, which gave them an easier path to the quarterback. Donald spent his career as a defensive tackle.
Defensive tackles with more than Donald’s 111 sacks? None*.
* – Stathead classified three of Donald’s seasons as having been a defensive end, which then remove those seasons from his stat counts.
Aaron Donald tackles for loss
It wasn’t just quarterbacks in danger of getting brought down by Donald. Anyone who had their hands on the football was at risk of being brought down, typically in the backfield. Of his 543 combined tackles, 176 (32.4 percent) went for a loss.
Among all-time defensive players, he ranks third, trailing only Terrell Suggs (202) and J.J. Watt (195). Both Suggs and Watt were edge rushers, again placing Donald at the top of the defensive tackle list.
The next-closest defensive tackle is Ndamukong Suh, who had 130.
Aaron Donald tackles
The tackles weren’t always in the backfield. Donald’s pursuit of plays allowed him to rack up gaudy tackle numbers.
He had 543 combined tackles, including 340 solo and 203 assisted. Among defensive tackles, that ranks him tied for 27th.
Aaron Donald forced fumbles
Like with sacks, historic data on forced fumbles is incomplete. ProFootballReference’s records date back only to 1993.
In that time, Donald ranks tied for 47th with 24 forced fumbles. Among defensive tackles, he comes in at No. 1, per Stathead, with John Randle’s 21 coming in at No. 2.
