Aaron Donald’s 7th straight Pro Bowl puts him in rare company

Aaron Donald surprised no one on Monday night when the NFL announced he was selected to the Pro Bowl as the top defensive tackle in the NFC. Donald making the Pro Bowl is like LeBron James scoring double-digits: automatic.

It’s the seventh year in a row that Donald has been selected to the NFL’s all-star game, making it every year since being a first-round pick in 2014. He’s also been named a first-team All-Pro in six straight seasons, with a seventh selection likely to come this year, too.

Having now made the Pro Bowl in seven straight years to start his career, Donald joined an elite group of players. He’s only the fourth defender since the 1970 merger to make the Pro Bowl in each of his first seven seasons.

The others are Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor, Hall of Famer Derrick Thomas, and Patrick Willis, who would’ve been a lock for Canton had he not retired early.

Donald has shown no signs of slowing down, either. He ranks second in the NFL with 12.5 sacks and has 11 tackles for loss, hitting the quarterback 25 times with 39 total tackles. He’s also forced four fumbles and recovered one, consistently dominating opposing linemen each week.

Watt is undoubtedly his stiffest competition in the race for Defensive Player of the Year, a race that could come down to the wire. But whether Donald wins it or not, he’ll still be viewed as one of the very best players in football.