{
  "id": 6100018,
  "title": "Kyle Shanahan expects Aaron Donald to play on Thursday night",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/07/kyle-shanahan-expects-aaron-donald-to-play-on-thursday-night",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-07T04:43:50.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/kyle-shanahan-expects-aaron-donald-044350630.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Kyle Shanahan, head coach of the 49ers, anticipates Aaron Donald to play in Thursday night's game against the Rams in Melbourne. According to Shanahan, he had prepared for Donald's return after two years of retirement and decided it was happening a month ago. The 49ers coach expressed that Donald is a \"hell of a player\" and the team will have its work cut out for him. Donald's unexpected retirement after the 2023 season caused celebration within the 49ers facility, but it was quickly overshadowed by his return this year. In what the 49ers expect to be a challenging matchup, rookie left guard Carver Willis may have to face Donald, marking a significant moment for the rookie as he enters the league.",
  "summary": "Aaron Donald is back.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}