NFL free agency is basically in the rear-view mirror, the owners meetings are next week and the draft is only a few weeks away. No rest for the weary …
• Because he may be the single most-dominant player of the past decade, I don’t mind doubling down on Aaron Donald content (our takeaways led with him, too). And we’ll start by turning the clock back to 2014, when the undersized Pitt defensive tackle was, to some degree, a polarizing prospect among scouts.
Everyone knew he could play. From there, two questions remained. One was whether he’d be a scheme-specific player—needing to be in a system that would get him upfield, and not require him to take on blocks, given his lack of height (6’1"), weight (280 pounds) and length. Another was whether he’d be able to handle the down-to-down rigors of being an NFL defensive lineman.
