Rookie linebacker improving by leaps, bounds for Colts

The Indianapolis Colts figured Darius Leonard would emerge as a defensive playmaker one day.

He skipped the learning curve.

Two weeks into his rookie season, the weakside linebacker leads the NFL with 27 tackles, already has forced one fumble, recovered another, had a sack and provided a new, dynamic dimension in the Colts’ rebuilt defence.

“When we came here, there were only one or two guys (at linebacker),” defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus said Tuesday.

“He was kind of thrust into that position and we treated him as such. He’s grabbed that role, taken it and he’s done a good job with it.”

Just how impressive has the 6-foot-2, 234-pound, 23-yearold been?

Leonard’s 18-tackle performance Sunday at Washington was the fifth-best grade by a linebacker since Eberflus implemented his points system in 1995. Some view Leonard’s immediate impact as a surprise, but he was pretty impressive in college.

Leonard set the career record for tackles (394) at South Carolina State, a Football Championship Subdivision school largely overshadowed by the state’s more prominent programs at Clemson and South Carolina as well as Furman, the 1988 FCS national champions.

Twice he was selected as the Mid-eastern Athletic Conference defensive player of the year and Leonard got his nickname “Maniac” following a 19-tackle performance against Clemson in 2016.