Colts linebacker Darius Leonard did not play like an All-Pro in the season opener. Or a Pro Bowler. Or even a starting linebacker in the NFL.
Defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus and his staff graded Leonard’s performance an “F.” Leonard received 10 loafs, which are plays when coaches deemed he gave less than 100 percent until the whistle.
So what did Leonard think of his performance?
“It was terrible,” Leonard said, via Stephen Holder of TheAthletic.com. “[Linebacker] Anthony Walker had a great day. Instead of him getting pulled, I should have been pulled. That right there humbled me. It let me know right there that you’re not ‘that guy.’
“Now I have to go back to the film room and take care of the small details. Now, it’s about paying attention to these details and going to practice and working even harder than I’ve been working.”
Leonard, the 2018 defensive rookie of the year, called it his worst game since the 2018 preseason opener.
“For a guy who holds his standards pretty high, you know that’s not what you want to put on tape,” Leonard said. “It hurts me and makes me want to grind even harder to prove on Sunday that I’m not that guy.”