Friday open thread: Which player are you rooting for in Super Bowl 53?

Sometimes the Super Bowl presents a matchup that leaves you without a team to root for. Both teams can be so emotionally repugnant that it makes it hard to have a rooting interest in The Big Game.

For me, Super Bowl 53 falls into that category. Like just about everyone else outside of Boston—and a subset of Michigan fans still obsessed with Tom Brady—I’m over the New England Patriots. While I appreciate them assuming the villain role this year, that still doesn’t mean I can muster up enough good will to actually root for them.

As for the Rams, I just don’t really like the idea of another championship going to an undeserving city. I live in Los Angeles before, and I know that besides their love for the Lakers (and less so for the Dodgers), it’s just not a great sports city. The city is full of transplants, so even the fans of the local teams are likely people that have abandoned their home team—a move I view as traitorous.

So when both teams are despicable in one way or another, you can only root for the individuals. So today’s Question of the Day is:

Which player in Super Bowl 53 are you rooting for?

My answer: It has to be Aaron Donald.

I know there will always be a little sting when Donald succeeds, knowing that he could be just as dominant in Honolulu Blue right now, but if there’s ever a guy deserving of a Super Bowl ring, it’s probably him.

We’re only five years into Donald’s career, and there’s a pretty good feeling already that Donald will be in the conversation for best defensive player of all time. The dude already has 59.5 sacks in his young career, and that’s nearly unheard of for an interior defender.

He’s changing the game, and is an absolute joy to watch. And while Donald will likely have plenty of other chances to get a ring, he’ll be the most deserving player on the field this Sunday to pick up his first.

Your turn.