One of the biggest matchups of Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season will feature the Los Angeles Rams against the New York Giants. Aaron Donald, who has yet to make his official debut this season, still does not have the green light from the coaching staff to take the field.
“We haven’t decided that yet,” the head coach Sean McVay said in his video conference, via Sarah Barshop of ESPN. “He’s going to continue to work his process and we’ll see what that looks like.”
After the loss in their debut against the San Francisco 49ers, it seems the Rams desperately need a boost with Donald on the field. However, they appear to be taking a cautious approach to his return, despite facing a Giants team whose physicality prevailed against the Dallas Cowboys in its season opener.
Donald’s final preparations
After Donald came out of retirement, it was more than clear that getting up to speed with his teammates would take some time. As a first measure, it was decided that he would not travel to Australia for Week 1, where the Rams ultimately lost to the San Francisco 49ers.
Aaron Donald #99 of the Los Angeles Rams warms-up prior to a game.
Obviously, McVay needs one of his biggest stars to be at 100% for his first game of the season, especially knowing that he will face a New York Giants team coming off a win in the first SNF of the season.
What’s Myles Garrett’s current situation?
Things did not go as expected for the Rams, who opened their season 0-1 and, even more concerning, had to deal with the injury suffered by Myles Garrett in Melbourne. McVay was unable to provide an exact timeline for when the defensive end could return to action, and instead made it a top priority to address what happened following the injury.
“Thought we would take an approach where he’d be feeling good enough to go contribute positive change and be the player that he’s capable of. That wasn’t the case. And so the next right thing for us is to be able to get this thing fixed,” the HC said via ESPN‘s Sarah Barshop.
A big Week 2 showdown
The Rams and Giants are set to face off in a Week 2 primetime matchup on Monday Night Football, September 21, 2026. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:15 PM ET at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Both teams will be looking to make an early-season statement under the bright lights, making it one of the most anticipated night games of the week.
