Aaron Donald‘s return to the Los Angeles Rams has vaulted him near the top of NFL Comeback Player of the Year odds at multiple sportsbooks, while others don’t even have him listed.
A statement to LSR from The Associated Press raises questions about whether the future Hall of Famer actually fits the award’s own definition.
Donald voluntarily retired from the NFL after the 2023 season, before announcing his return over the weekend. The AP shared with LSR on Tuesday the official definition of the award, which the AP also shares with voters.
Comeback Player of the Year: A player who has demonstrated resilience in the face of adversity by overcoming illness, injury or other challenging circumstances that caused them to miss playing time in the past year.
Despite the definition of the award, the AP did not specifically address Donald’s eligibility, as sports betting operators started posting his odds.
Donald’s return and the odds
Donald signed a one-year deal, worth upwards of $30 million, to return to the Rams, who are the consensus Super Bowl favorites.
While Donald doesn’t fit The AP’s description to win CPOY, he’s a top favorite to win the award. FanDuel lists the top five as follows:
- Patrick Mahomes: +200
- Kyler Murray: +500
- Aaron Donald: +700
- Jayden Daniels: +750
- Daniel Jones: +1600
DraftKings has Donald listed with the fourth-best odds:
- Patrick Mahomes: +185
- Jayden Daniels: +450
- Kyler Murray: +600
- Aaron Donald: +750
- Malik Nabers: +1400
Donald is the only player out of the top five that isn’t returning from injury, illness or “other challenging circumstances,” yet he remains top favorite to win the award. Penn Entertainment’s theScore Bet does not list Donald at all in CPOY odds.
Why Donald’s eligibility is in question
Geno Smith and Joe Flacco won the CPOY in 2022 and 2023, respectively, which triggered the Associated Press to clarify the criteria for the award in June 2024 to only include players who were overcoming injury, illness or another set of circumstances. Smith and Flacco were backups the years before winning.
Voluntarily retiring from the NFL does not meet the AP’s criteria to win the award, and it contrasts to the situations of other contenders. Donald is up against Patrick Mahomes, Jayden Daniels, Kyler Murray, Daniel Jones and Malik Nabers, all of whom are returning from major injuries.
The new criteria did not stop Philip Rivers from earning a vote last year. Rivers came out of retirement after five years and played three games with the Indianapolis Colts at the end of the 2025 season.
