The championship parade covered only 1.1 miles. But as Aaron Donald danced, drank, roared, blew kisses and flexed his cartoonish muscles, his mind drifted beyond the raucous celebration. As thousands screamed and chanted at the six double-decker buses carrying the jovial superstar and his Rams teammates, they rolled away from the Shrine Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles, snaking along Figueroa Street, inching toward the Coliseum.
Donald bounced and sipped and hugged along the route, his gold chain and diamond-studded “99” pendant flopping from neck to chin. So much had aligned to make the party possible. Stay in the moment, he reminded himself.