Aaron Donald is one of the best players in all of football, and he's headed into the final year of his rookie contract. Donald, the 13th overall pick in the 2014 draft, has racked up 163 total tackles and 28 sacks in three seasons, while making the Pro Bowl three times and being named a First Team All-Pro twice.
It should come as no surprise that the Rams want to keep him around for the long-term. "Aaron Donald is a priority for us," general manager Les Snead said, according to ESPN.com. "That's about all I can say."
Rams COO Kevin Demoff was a little bit more explicit in his thoughts. "Aaron deserves to be paid among the elite players in our game," Demoff said "That's never been a sticking point for anybody in our organization."
If Donald is to be paid among the elite players in football, what would that look like? Here's the top of the defensive tackle market:
| Player | Team | Years | Total $ | AAV | Guaranteed |
| Ndamukong Suh | MIA | 6 | $114,375,000 | $19,062,500 | $59,955,000 |
| Fletcher Cox | PHI | 6 | $102,600,000 | $17,100,000 | $63,299,000 |
| Marcell Dareus | BUF | 6 | $96,574,118 | $16,095,686 | $60,000,000 |
| Gerald McCoy | TB | 6 | $95,200,000 | $15,866,667 | $51,500,000 |
| Malik Jackson | JAC | 6 | $85,500,000 | $14,250,000 | $42,000,000 |
| Kawann Short | CAR | 5 | $80,500,000 | $16,100,000 | $35,000,000 |
| Geno Atkins | CIN | 5 | $53,327,000 | $10,665,400 | $15,000,000 |
| Brandon Williams | BAL | 5 | $52,500,000 | $10,500,000 | $33,750,000 |
| Corey Liuget | LAC | 5 | $51,250,000 | $10,250,000 | $30,477,000 |
| Damon Harrison | NYG | 5 | $46,250,000 | $9,250,000 | $24,000,000 |
Taking a look at this list, there appears to be three tiers of players: there's the Atkins-Williams-Liuget-Harrison tier making between $9-11 million per season with total compensation ranging from $46-54 million; there's the Cox-Dareus-McCoy-Jackson-Short tier, with players making $14-17 million per year and receiving total compensation from $80-103 million; and then there's Ndamukong Suh, making over $19 million per year with a total contract value approaching $115 million.
The lowest tier among this group is mostly occupied by pass-rush or run-stopping specialists. They play one of the two at an elite level but don't contribute quite as much in the other area. The next tier is filled with two-way interior linemen, but none of whom are quite as elite as Donald against either the run or the pass.
So, given Donald's prodigious talent and reputation as the best defensive tackle in the NFL, the Suh contract has to be considered a benchmark here. It would not be a shock if he were the first non-quarterback to break into the $20 million-plus per year salary range on a long-term deal.
