Aaron Donald fight: Rams DL swings two helmets at Bengals players during brawl at practice

Abraham Smith

The Bengals and the Rams enjoyed one of these “the most polite common practices in history” On Wednesday.

It wasn’t nearly as cordial on Thursday. The reigning AFC and NFC champions engaged in a ferocious brawl that brought practice to a halt.

The melee began after a running play that saw Bengals offensive tackle La’el Collins engaged to a Rams defenseman. Collins took offense at how long the Los Angeles player grabbed him from behind and started throwing punches.

From then on, “all hell broke loose,” per ESPN’s Ben Baby.

MORE: Aaron Donald’s chronicle of dirty hits plays with the Rams

To no one’s surprise, Rams instigator Aaron Donald was involved in the fight. However, he may have gone a little too far with his antics.

In fact, that’s Donald in the thick of things, brandishing a pair of Bengals helmets at members of the opposing team. He fired off some big shots, gear in hand, before several players, including a couple of Rams, were able to take him down.

After that, a trainer appeared to discourage him from further involvement in the brawl.

It’s unclear exactly what prompted Donald’s helmet swing, but many on social media expressed their contempt for what happened. This included former Seahawks, 49ers and Buccaneers cornerman Richard Sherman.

Others compared Donald’s swing to that of Myles Garrett, who hit Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph with his helmet in the head at the end of a Browns vs. Steelers game in 2019. Garrett was suspended by the NFL for the remainder of the season (six games).

MORE: Reunion with hit Myles Garrett/Mason Rudolph helmet

However, Bengals trainer Zac Taylor didn’t make much of the fight as reporters caught up with him immediately afterwards.

“It just got a little ‘scratchy,'” Taylor said. “Well, we just announced it. We were in the last period and we’ve had two really good days of work. So was it worth making the few extra games? No.”

Rams coach Sean McVay was a little more upset about the incident. Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic tweeted that an “enraged” McVay jumped into the scrum to try to break it up.

“I do not know what [it] was,” McVay explained of the brawl. “I only see guys swinging and some guys have helmets on some guys don’t, you just never know what can happen. My biggest concern is unnecessary injury.”

For those wondering why McVay isn’t worried about a possible suspension, the NFL has no responsibility for monitoring player behavior at practice, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Responsibility lies with the clubs, so Donald will almost certainly not be suspended.

Donald is unlikely to play the Bengals on Saturday, however, given McVay’s preseason penchant for dormant starters. Regardless, it will be worth watching to see if any bad blood from practice spills over into the game.

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