NFL stars who unretired: Aaron Donald joins Deion Sanders - ESPN

Defensive lineman Aaron Donald has followed through on his interest in returning to the NFL, agreeing to a one-year, $20 million deal with the Los Angeles Rams after two years in retirement. The decision thrust Donald, 35, into a select group of NFL players who interrupted retirement to get back on the field.

How have others fared in similar situations? The list is relatively small, especially when you eliminate those whose «retirements» lasted less than one offseason. (Ahem, Brett Favre in 2008 and Tom Brady in 2022.) We also didn't consider players such as Michael Vick or Plaxico Burress, who returned to the field after time in jail.

Here are 10 of the most notable efforts to return from retirement, ranked more or less in order of their success:

Cunningham had the best season of his career after retiring (for the first time). His career appeared over in 1995 when, at age 32, he received almost no interest on the free agent market. So Cunningham retired, moved home to Las Vegas and operated a granite and marble shop. But Minnesota Vikings coach Dennis Green convinced him to resume his career as a backup in 1997.

When starter Brad Johnson was injured in 1998, Cunningham took over and led the team to an overall record of 15-1 (13-1 in Cunningham's starts) with an MVP-caliber season, throwing for 3,704 yards and 34 touchdowns. He earned a contract extension worth up to $28 million but was benched after six starts in 1999. He finished his career as a backup for the Ravens in 2001.

Sanders fashioned an improbable second career as a part-time defensive back with the Baltimore Ravens after three full seasons away from the game. He initially called it quits following the 2000 season; he was so eager to get away that he