A week after Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa lived in the Bills’ backfield with 3.0 sacks and six tackles for loss, the Patriots limited him to just one quarterback hit and one tackle for loss on Sunday.
They’ll try to do a similar thing to Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald on Thursday Night Football.
Donald is currently second in the league with 11.0 sacks and is tied for second with four forced fumbles, making him a prime candidate to win his third Defensive Player of the Year award. On Tuesday, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick described him as quick, explosive, and instinctive.
“He’s an outstanding player. He can wreck a game. There’s no play he’s not a factor on, he’s right in the middle of the defense,” Bill Belichick said, via Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald. “You can’t really get away from him on any run or pass play. You have to deal with him blocking on every play. He’s definitely a major factor in the game. We’re going to have to do a good job on him.”
Donald has faced the Patriots twice before and New England has done well to keep him off the stat sheet. In Dec. 2016, Donald had three tackles and a quarterback hit in a 26-10 loss. In Super Bowl LIII, Donald recorded five tackles and a quarterback hit.
Belichick added that even though the defensive tackle can ruin an offense’s day, “if you put so many guys on Donald, that creates problems in other places.”
Led by Donald and cornerback Jalen Ramsay, the Rams sport one of the league’s best defenses. They’re currently No. 2 in yards allowed and No. 5 in points allowed.
