By admin 
Impressing Aaron Donald isn’t easy, but Trent McDuffie has done it.
Donald, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year and eight-time first-team All-Pro, ended his nearly three-year retirement to rejoin the Los Angeles Rams. His Week 2 debut against the New York Giants was his first official game alongside the cornerback.
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McDuffie shined in the win, shutting down Malik Nabers and snagging an interception. Days later, ahead of the Rams’ Week 3 “Sunday Night Football” matchup with the Denver Broncos, Donald praised the cornerback.
A rare compliment from Aaron Donald
“That guy’s good,” Donald said. “I told the guy I train with, I said, ‘Yeah, he’s a special talent.’ He made a lot of big plays. I usually don’t watch the DBs, but he caught my eye. He’s something special.”
A day earlier, Davante Adams called McDuffie the
McDuffie leads 89 qualified cornerbacks with a 93.2 Pro Football Focus coverage grade. He’s also tied with Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Hezekiah Masses for the lowest passer rating allowed, a perfect 0.0.
Through two games as a Ram, McDuffie has excelled in zone and man coverage, allowing one catch for 13 yards on eight targets with four pass breakups. That’s nothing new for the two-time All-Pro. The spotlight of a star-studded roster is.
The Rams ranked 19th in pass defense last season, and their secondary cost them in the NFC Championship Game loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. Needing a shutdown outside corner, they traded four draft picks, including a first-rounder, for McDuffie and made him the league’s highest-paid cornerback.
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So far, McDuffie has been everything the Rams envisioned, and now he’s playing alongside two future Hall of Famers. The Rams landed Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns in a June blockbuster, and Donald returned two months later. Neither was part of the picture when McDuffie arrived in March.
The trio has yet to share the field. Donald missed the opener, and Garrett went on injured reserve after Week 1 with a knee injury requiring surgery. That day will come.
McDuffie’s next test comes Sunday in Denver against Jaylen Waddle, the Broncos’ prized offseason addition, who exploded for eight catches for 138 yards in the home opener. The two have met twice before, when McDuffie was with the Kansas City Chiefs and Waddle with the Miami Dolphins.
For now, McDuffie has earned the respect of Donald, arguably his generation’s best defensive player, and that goes a long way.
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This story was originally published September 26, 2026 at 1:43 PM.