Stampede Blue
Riley Leonard’s performance against the Texans wasn’t just productive — it was revealing. Against one of the best defenses in football, he showed a blend of traits that translate at the NFL level: arm strength to attack tight windows and stretch defenses, confidence to let it rip without hesitation, poise, and the athleticism to extend plays when they broke down. This wasn’t a quarterback surviving on scheme or easy throws; it was a quarterback actively solving problems in real time. As the clips break down, what stands out isn’t any single throw or run, but how comfortably Leonard operated against speed, pressure, and complexity — the kind of environment that separates backups from legitimate starters.
This is a heck of a way to start your first NFL start! The breakdown in coverage made things easy for him, but he showed off his arm and didn’t hesitate for a second making the throw.
Leonard is a legitimately fast player who can do a lot of damage with his feet. He can run away from linebackers. This clip showed that he can be used on designed quarterback runs and is a threat through the air and on the ground.
Despite the ugly drop, Leonard shows great timing and accuracy on the throw. The timing of the throw is perfect as it finds Pittman right in the middle of a nice big gap and it’s thrown without leading him as leading him could’ve led him too far into the safety, which could’ve gotten him killed.
I love this throw! Leonard does a great job of flipping his hips and setting his feet quickly before ripping a throw 40+ yards down the field without missing a beat. The efficiency of the hip flipping into his feet setting was high level and shows his mechanics are solid.
With the pocket collapsing, Leonard wisely steps up to buy some space and times the throw with his hitch. Oftentimes, throwing while hitching forward leads to an overthrown, but Leonard does a perfect job throwing a great touch throw to a horizontally moving receiver. Pittman needs to make this catch.
Leonard looks off and then comes back to Pierce to his right and throws a perfect ball that only Pierce could’ve caught.
The ball is slightly underthrown, but Leonard does a great job again of stepping up in the pocket, which was collapsing from the outside and hits Pierce who is wide open. A ball thrown 2-4 yards further gets Pierce in stride instead of him throwing down, but he was open enough he didn’t need to be perfect.
I love Leonard going through his full drop with a hitch and hitting Downs perfectly on time. It shows the scheme works well as the timing between the quarterback’s footwork and the receiver’s route is in sync. I love the decision and throw from Leonard, who finds the Colts’ best receiver on 3rd downs.
It doesn’t look like anything on paper, but this is a heck of a run...
