Darius Leonard

Darius Leonard
refer to caption
Leonard in 2018.
No. 53 – Indianapolis Colts
Position: Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1995-07-27) July 27, 1995
Nichols, South Carolina
Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight: 234 lb (106 kg)
Career information
High school: Lake View
(Lake View, South Carolina)
College: South Carolina State
NFL Draft: 2018 / Round: 2 / Pick: 36
Career history
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
  • MEAC defensive player of the year (2016, 2017)
  • First-team All-MEAC (2015)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 4, 2018
Total tackles: 54
Sacks: 4.0
Forced fumbles: 1
Fumble recoveries: 1
Interceptions: 0
Player stats at NFL.com

Darius Leonard (born July 27, 1995) is an American football linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the South Carolina State Bulldogs and was drafted in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Colts.

College career

Leonard led SCSU in tackles as a redshirt freshman in 2014, compiling 86, 14 for loss, 5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles. He posted 70 stops the following year (2015), 13​1⁄2 of those for loss, with five sacks and two interceptions to earn a first-team all-conference selection as a redshirt sophomore.[1] After the 2016 season, Leonard was named the MEAC defensive player of the year, making SC State the first school to win the award four years in a row.[2] Leonard finished the season with 124 tackles, 14​1⁄2 tackles for loss, 3​1⁄2 sacks, two interceptions, three pass break-ups, and four forced fumbles. He had an impressive game against ACC powerhouse Clemson, totaling 19 tackles. Leonard saved his best for last, as he posted career highs in total tackles (113) and sacks (8​1⁄2) as a senior while picking off two more passes and forcing one fumble. His 73 solo tackles in 2017 put him in the Top 10 in the nation, and 4​1⁄2 of his sacks came in his final two games.[3] He also won the MEAC defensive player of the year award again after the 2017 season.[4]

Professional career

On November 20, 2017, it was announced that Leonard had accepted his invitation to play in the 2018 Senior Bowl.[5] On January 27, 2018, Leonard played in the 2018 Senior Bowl and recorded a game-high 14 combined tackles (five solo) as part of Bill O'Brien's North team that defeated the South 45–16.[6] Leonard's performance at the Senior Bowl immensely helped his draft stock.[7] Leonard attended the NFL Scouting Combine, but was unable to complete all of his combine drills after injuring his quadriceps while running his 40-yard dash. He completed the bench press, 40-yard dash, 20-yard dash, and 10-yard dash at the NFL Combine. On March 20, 2018, Leonard participated at South Carolina State's pro day and performed the rest of his combine drills. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Leonard was projected to be a second or third round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the sixth best inside linebacker prospect in the draft by NFL analyst Mel Kiper Jr. and was ranked the seventh best outside linebacker by DraftScout.com.[8][9]

Pre-draft measurables
Ht Wt Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert jump Broad BP
6 ft 2 in
(1.88 m)		 234 lb
(106 kg)		 34 3⁄8 in
(0.87 m)		 10 1⁄4 in
(0.26 m)		 4.70 s 1.69 s 2.77 s 4.63 s 7.37 s 38 in
(0.97 m)		 10 ft 8 in
(3.25 m)		 20 reps
All values from NFL Combine/South Carolina State's Pro Day[10][8]

Indianapolis Colts

External video
Colts draft Darius Leonard 36th overall
Instant Draft Grade: Darius Leonard

The Indianapolis Colts selected Leonard in the second round (36th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft. Leonard was the fifth linebacker drafted in 2018.[11] On July 23, 2018, Leonard signed a four-year, $7.24 million contract that included $4.16 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $3.35 million.[12] Leonard entered training camp slated as the starting weakside linebacker.[13] Head coach Frank Reich named Leonard the starting weakside linebacker to start the regular season in 2018, alongside Najee Goode and middle linebacker Anthony Walker Jr.[14]

He made his professional regular season debut and first career start in the Colts' season-opener against the Cincinnati Bengals and recorded nine combined tackles and recovered a fumble in their 34–23 loss.[15] In Week 2, he collected 19 combined tackles (15 solo) and made his first career sack on Redskins' quarterback Alex Smith during a 21–9 win at the Washington Redskins.[16] For his performance, he was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.[17] The following week, Leonard recorded 13 combined tackles (nine solo) and made two sacks on Eagles' quarterback Carson Wentz in the Colts' 20–16 loss at the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3.[18] On October 4, 2018, after totaling 54 tackles (which lead the league, and was most by a player in first four weeks of the season since 1994) and 4 sacks (leading all rookies) in September, Leonard was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month.[19]

Personal life

On November 11, 2017, Leonard proposed to his girlfriend after SC state beat Hampton.[20]

References

  1. ↑ "NFL Draft & Combine Profile - Darius Leonard". NFL.com. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  2. ↑ Cook, Joe (December 7, 2016). "SCSU's Darius Leonard Is MEAC Defensive Player Of The Year". Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Darius Leonard, LB, South Carolina State". cbssports.com. March 22, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  4. ↑ "S.C. STATE FOOTBALL: Leonard repeats as BoxToRow Defensive Player of the Year". December 13, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  5. ↑ "2 local Carolina prospects accept Senior Bowl invites". pantherswire.usatoday.com. November 23, 2017. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  6. ↑ Haggard, Mark. "Lake View's Darius Leonard dominates on defense at Senior Bowl". wpde.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Darius Leonard Turns Heads at Senior Bowl". wltx.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  8. 1 2 "South Carolina State OLB Darius Leonard : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Mel Kiper's Big Board and position rankings: Top 2018 NFL Draft prospects". abcnews.go.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  10. ↑ "NFL Draft Prospect Profile - Darius Leonard". nfl.com. March 1, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Indianapolis Colts Select Darius Leonard with Pick 36 in NFL Draft". StampedeBlue.com. April 27, 2018. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
  12. ↑ "Spotrac.com: Darius Leonard contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  13. ↑ "Predicting Who Will Start at Linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts". indianasportscoverage.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  14. ↑ Andrew Walker (September 4, 2018). "Colts Release First Unofficial Depth Chart Of 2018 Regular Season". Colts.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Thumbs up, thumbs down: Margus Hunt, Darius Leonard shine, Jack Doyle, Quincy Wilson don't". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2018-10-04.
  16. ↑ "Doyel: A star is born in Colts linebacker Darius Leonard". IndyStar. September 16, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  17. ↑ Knoblauch, Austin (September 19, 2018). "Mahomes, Fitzpatrick among NFL Players of Week". NFL.com.
  18. ↑ "2018 Colts Rookie Watch: Week 3". Indianapolis Colts. Retrieved 2018-10-04.
  19. ↑ "Darius Leonard Named NFL's Defensive Rookie Of The Month". Colts.com. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  20. ↑ Cook, Joe (November 11, 2017). "Star Player Proposes To Girlfriend After SC State Win". Retrieved February 28, 2018.
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