play

Rams GM joins McAfee, dishes on Aaron Donald's return (1:41)

Sarah BarshopSep 4, 2026, 02:37 PM ET
Close

LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Rams plan to bring all their players to Melbourne, Australia, for their season opener against the San Francisco 49ers, head coach Sean McVay said Friday.

"Yes, that's the plan," McVay said.

That's significant because on Monday, McVay said there was "absolutely" a possibility that Aaron Donald would not travel to Australia for the game.

McVay has been clear that he does not want to put a timeline of when Donald will play in his first game for the Rams after coming out of retirement. Donald, who initially retired in March 2024, signed with Los Angeles on Sunday.

After taking part in individual drills Sunday, Donald did not practice Monday, something McVay said "was part of the plan all along."

On Friday, McVay said he doesn't have a "sense quite yet" about whether Donald will play against the 49ers. McVay said Donald's ramp-up since signing has been "really good" and that Donald is "so intentional about his rhythm and routine."

"Obviously one of the best things you can do is get out there and play football in 11-on-11 settings with pads, your eye progression, taking on some of the double-teams, different things like that," McVay said. "So this week will be a big week for him in terms of how he feels. And then we'll just kind of take it a day at a time and see where he's at.

"If he feels good enough to go, great. If not, I've got a lot of confidence in the other guys that'll be ready to step up if that's the case, that have really gotten all the reps anyways."

McVay also said Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua "is making good progress" as he rehabs a psoas (core/lower back) injury. Nacua first injured his psoas on Aug. 11 in a joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys. He returned to practice on Sunday.

"He's feeling good," McVay said. "Been hitting some high-speed yards at a really good clip with [team doctor] Reggie [Scott] and his group. And when we get back out there, it'll be fun to have him."

McVay: Rams plan to bring all players to opener

Discussion