Rams DE Robert Quinn will make his second-consecutive trip to the Pro Bowl, and this year he’ll have a fellow St. Louis defender joining him. Rookie DT Aaron Donald was also selected to the NFL’s annual All-Star game, which will be played January 25 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ari.
Quinn currently has 10.5 sacks to lead the Rams. This is his third-consecutive season in double digits in the category. In addition, Rams coaches have credited him with 35 quarterback pressures, 22 quarterback hits and 13 tackles for loss. Since Quinn entered the league in 2011, his 45.0 sack are sixth most in the NFL, and over the last three seasons, only Houston’s J.J. Watt has more sacks than Quinn’s 40.0.
Donald is the first Rams rookie to make the Pro Bowl since RB Jerome Bettis earned the honor in 1993. He’s the first Rams rookie defensive player to receive a Pro Bowl nod since LB Isiah Robertson did so in 1971.
Donald, who was the 13th overall pick in May’s NFL Draft, leads all NFL rookies with 8.0 sacks and ranks fifth in the category among all interior defensive linemen. His 8.0 sacks are fourth most by a Rams defensive tackle since the NFL began recognizing the stat in 1982. Donald has 17 tackles for loss, which is the most by a defensive tackle since the NFL began tracking the stat in 1997.
Quinn and Donald give St. Louis multiple defenders in the Pro Bowl for the first time since 2003 (DE Leonard Little and DB Aeneas Williams). Quinn is the first Rams defender to make the Pro Bowl in consecutive seasons since CB Jerry Gray did so in 1988-89.
