Aaron Donald admits Jason Kelce’s ‘quick little ass’ always got him FITS on double teams as Rams legend describes his retired teammate as one of his toughest opponents: ‘I hated playing Philadelphia.’

Aaron Donald recorded 111 sacks during his decorated 10-year NFL career, but the legendary Rams defensive tackle never tackled a Philadelphia Eagles quarterback.

The reason, as he told former Eagles defensive end Chris Long’s podcast, was a good scheme, a heavy dose of double teams and an athletic center in Jason Kelce.

“I hated playing against Philadelphia,” said Donald, who entered the NFL three years after Kelce’s celebrated career began on the banks of the Delaware.

‘Kelce, her quick little ass always ran full [speed]”Donald continued. “He was hitting the ball and running at it right now, and I was like, ‘Bro, you got some good guards.’ Let them work. “You don’t have to help them all the time.”

“He said, ‘I’m not going to let you ruin the game.’

Aaron Donald (left) told Chris Long (right) that Jason Kelce frustrated him during his career.

Like Donald, Jason Kelce retired after the 2023 season and is eligible for the HOF in 2029.

The strategy seems to have worked. The Eagles are the only NFC team to deny Donald a sack in his career. In fact, the All-Pro considered one of the strongest players, pound for pound, in NFL history recorded just five tackles in five games against Philadelphia.

“Every play now, every time I played the Eagles, bro, I never had any one-on-ones,” Donald continued.

‘I probably took one or two during a game and that would be it. If you don’t win 1-1 that time, you’ll be finished. You’ll see double or triple teams the rest of the game.’

Both Kelce and Donald will retire together and both will likely be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s class of 2029.

Kelce (6-foot-3, 295 pounds) and Donald (6-foot-1, 280 pounds) were both somewhat undersized for their respective positions, but they overcame that deficiency with superior quickness and strength.

As Kelce mentioned during his retirement speech, he owed much of his success to former Eagles offensive line coach Howard Mudd, who “valued offensive linemen for their athleticism more than their size.”

Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald watches from the bench in 2022

Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris worked with Donald as an assistant in Los Angeles, where the defensive tackle made a significant impression.

“The best thing was seeing the evolution of who Aaron was as a player,” Morris told the LA Times in a telephone interview. “To come into this league, take it by storm, with people questioning his size at the time, he really took ownership of what the prototype of the position looks like and how it’s played.

“And then seeing him become this beloved older figure by a group of guys he got to play with at the end, I thought it was just Aaron Donald’s story.

“To see that genuine enthusiasm he had last year alongside him in Los Angeles, playing with those young men and bringing out the best in everyone around him, it just epitomizes who he was as a player and as a man.”