NFL

Los Angeles Rams star Aaron Donald to miss first career game due to injury

By Sports Desk November 30, 2022

For the first time in his illustrious career, an injury will prevent Los Angeles Rams seven-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Aaron Donald from taking the field. 

Coach Sean McVay said on Wednesday that a high-ankle sprain suffered in the Rams' 26-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 12 will sideline Donald for Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks. 

This will be the first game the 31-year-old Donald will miss since Week 17 of the 2017 season, when the Rams rested a number of starters ahead of the playoffs. The only other game he missed in his nine-year career was Week 1 of the same season because of a contract holdout. 

Despite missing those two games in 2017, he still won his first of three NFL Defensive Player of the Year Awards. 

Donald, who has five sacks, 10 tackles for a loss, 11 quarterback hits and a forced fumble in 11 games this season, is the latest Rams star to be saddled with an injury, joining quarterback Matthew Stafford (concussion protocol) and 2021 AP Offensive Player of the Year Cooper Kupp (high-ankle sprain). 

Unlike Kupp, whose high-ankle sprain required surgery, Donald won't need surgery, and is considered week to week, according to McVay. 

Although the injury isn't thought to be season-ending, there is a possibility the team ultimately decides to shut him down seeing as the Rams are essentially playing out the string. 

Last Sunday's loss was the fifth straight for Los Angeles, dropping the defending Super Bowl champions to 3-8 – alone in last place in the NFC West. 

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    The path to the play-offs is now even tougher for the Dallas Cowboys.

    Quarterback Dak Prescott will reportedly miss several weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

    The severity of the injury was determined Monday following an MRI.

    Prescott is planning to get a second opinion, and the Cowboys have not decided if they will place him on injured reserve, which would keep him on the sideline a minimum of four games.

     

    Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter.

    He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.

    Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.

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    In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.

    There is some good news for the Cowboys, though, as star defensive end Micah Parsons is likely to return this Sunday after missing the last four games with a high-ankle sprain.

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