Darius Leonard

At 29 years old, Darius Leonard has this physical status:

Darius Leonard, (born July 27, 1995), is an American football linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. (NFL).

He drafted the Colts in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft, and played college football for the South Carolina State Bulldogs.

Leonard led the league in tackles in his rookie season and was named First-Team All-Pro and Defensive Rookie of the Year; he was also named in the NFL Top 100 the following offseason.

Early years

Leonard attended and played high school football at Lake View High School in Lake View, South Carolina.

Personal life

Leonard is one of nine children to a single mother. Two of his older brothers were arrested and sentenced to life in middle school for murder. He is also the younger brother of former NFL star Anthony Waters. After SC State defeated Hampton, Leonard proposed to his mother Kayla, who he hadn't seen since kindergarten. Leonard revealed that the couple was expecting a baby girl in December 2018. Mia Leonard was born on March 28, 2019. Leonard welcomed daughter Laila on June 4, 2021.

Leonard appeared on Celebrity Family Feud's July 12, 2020 episode, in which the NFL rising stars took on former NFL Hall of Famers, which featured players such as Michael Irvin and Cris Carter.

Leonard, the Colts' training camp, told reporters how he now preferred to be called by his middle name, Shaquille, rather than his given name, Darius.

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College career

As a redshirt freshman in 2014, Leonard led SCSU in tackles, compiling 86, 14 for loss, five sacks, and two for forced fumbles. He made seven stops in 2015, 131 percent of those for loss, five sacks, and two interceptions, earning a first-team all-conference selection as a redshirt sophomore. Leonard was named MEAC defensive player of the year by the 2016 season, making SC State the first school to win the award for the fourth year in a row. Leonard had 124 tackles, 1412 tackles for loss, 312 sacks, two interceptions, three pass break-ups, three pass break-ups, and four forced fumbles by the end of the season. He had a big game against Clemson, which required 19 tackles. Leonard had a career high in total tackles (113) and sacks (81%) as a senior before taking two more passes and forcing one to fumble, but not for last. In 2017, his 73 solo tackles ranked him in the top ten in the country, and 412 of his sacks occurred in his final two games. Since the 2017 season, he received the MEAC defensive player of the year award once more.

Professional career

Leonard had accepted his invitation to play in the 2018 Senior Bowl on November 20, 2017. Leonard, 25, 2018, a senior bowler, had a game-high 14 combined tackles (five solo) on January 27, 2018, as part of Bill O'Brien's North team's win over the South 45-16. Leonard's success at the Senior Bowl was a big contributor to his draft's success. Leonard attended the NFL Scouting Combine, but he was unable to finish all of his combine drills after hurting his quadriceps while running his 40-yard dash. He ended the bench press, 40-yard dash, 20-yard dash, and a 10-yard dash at the NFL Combine. Leonard performed the majority of his combine drills on March 20, 2018, which was a highlight of his participation in the South Carolina State's pro day. Leonard was expected to be a second or third round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts at the conclusion of the pre-draft process. Mel Kiper Jr., the sixth best inside linebacker prospect in the draft, was ranked as the seventh best outside linebacker by DraftScout.com.

Leonard was chosen by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round with the 36th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Leonard was the sixth linebacker to be drafted in the draft.

Leonard signed a four-year, $7.24 million deal on July 23, 2018, which included a signing bonus of $3.35 million.

Leonard was slated as the starting weakside linebacker in the training camp. Leonard is the starting linebacker for the 2018 season, with Najee Goode and middle linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. as the starting weakside linebacker.

In the Colts' season-opening game against the Cincinnati Bengals, he made his professional debut and first career appearance, earning nine combined tackles and recovering a fumble in their 34-23 loss. During a 21–9 victory over the Washington Redskins on September 16, 2018, Leonard recorded a season-high 19 combined tackles (15 solo) and fired his first sack on Redskins quarterback Alex Smith. He was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts. In the Colts' 20–16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3, Leonard made 13 combined tackles (nine solo) and made two sacks on Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. Leonard was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month on October 4, 2018, leading the league with 54 combined tackles (including rookies) and four sacks (leading all rookies) in September. Leonard was inactive for the Colts' Week 5 loss to the New England Patriots due to an ankle injury sustained the previous week. During a 38–10 win over the Tennessee Titans on Monday, Leonard had seven combined tackles, one pass deflection, one suspended, and his first career interception. Leonard intercepted a pass by Titans' backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert, that was supposed for wide receiver Tajae Sharpe, and returned it for a ten-yard gain during the third quarter. Leonard, a rookie quarterback for the first time in a single season, was a record for the most tackles by a rookie in a single season in Week 15, beating the Dallas Cowboys 23–0. Leonard, who had 163, defeated the Tennessee Titans in 33–17, breaking the Colts' franchise record for most tackles in a single season. Leonard was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week once more for his work. Leonard was named AFC Defensive Player of the Month for December. He played in 163 combined tackles, eight pass deflections, seven interceptions, and two interceptions in 15 games and 15 starts in his rookie season in 2018. Leonard made the most tackles among all players as a rookie in 2018. Pro Football Focus assigned him an overall score of 80.3, the ninth highest rating among all linebackers in 2018.

The Indianapolis Colts finished second in the AFC South with a 10–6 record and a playoff berth. During a 21–7 victory over the Houston Texans in the AFC Wildcard Game, Leonard played in his first game in his career and collected 13 combined tackles (five solo) and broke up a pass attempt.

Leonard made ten tackles and one sack on Marcus Mariota as the Colts defeated 19–17 in Week 2 against the Tennessee Titans. Leonard reportedly suffered concussion-like symptoms and was forced to miss the next three games. In Week 7 against the Houston Texans, he made his return. In the 30–23 victory, Leonard recorded a team high ten tackles and an intercept off Deshaun Watson. Leonard finished with a team-high 13 tackles, fired Ryan Fitzpatrick once, intercepted a pass throw by Fitzpatrick, sacked a pass by Fitzpatrick, and resulted in a scramble on tight end Mike Gesicki, which was recovered by teammate Kenny Moore in Week 10 against the Miami Dolphins. Leonard recorded 12 tackles and fired Ryan Tannehill twice against the Tennessee Titans in Week 13. Leonard completed nine tackles and intercepted two passes against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, one of which was returned for an 80 yard pick six during the 38–35 loss.

He was accepted in his first Pro Bowl appearance after the season. Leonard had a team-leading 121 tackles, six tackles for injury, five interceptions, five interceptions, and two forced fumbles despite missing three games due to injury. In his first 25 games, he was the first NFL player since 1982 to have 10-plus sacks and five-plus interceptions.

Leonard made a team high nine tackles and recorded a strip sack on quarterback Matthew Stafford, who was reinstated by the Colts following the 41–21 victory. Leonard made a team-high 15 tackles (13 solo) and recovered a fumble kick off Gus Edwards during the 24–10 loss on Week 9. Leonard also sacked Ryan Tannehill once during the 45-26 loss to the Tennessee Titans in Week 12. Leonard led the team with 15 tackles and forced a fumble on wide receiver Ke Coutee that was recovered by the Colts during the 27-20 victory over Week 15. Leonard led the team with ten tackles and recorded a strip sack of Mike Glennon, who was recovered by the Colts after the 28-14 victory. Leonard was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts.

Leonard signed a five-year, $99.25 million contract with the Colts, making him the highest-paid outside linebacker in the NFL.

Leonard was defensive Player of the Week in Week 15, with one tackle for loss, a forced fumble, and an interception.

Leonard was named All-Pro of the Associated Press First Team. He has been a member of the All-Pro team (First Team in 2018, 2021, and 2020; Second Team in 2019). Leonard has the most complete All-Pro picks and the most First Team All-Pro picks by a linebacker in Colts history.

He was also selected for his third straight Pro Bowl (third time in his career).

Leonard underwent surgery on his back to repair nerves impinging by his disks during the offseason.

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NFL awards

• NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (2018)
• AP First Team All-Pro (2018; 2020; 2021)
• AP Second Team All-Pro (2019)
• 4x AFC Defensive Player of the Week (Week 2, 2018; Week 17, 2018; Week 17, 2020; Week 15, 2021)
• AFC Defensive Player of the Month (December 2018)
• NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month (September 2018)
• 3x Pro Bowl (2019-2021)