- Leonard’s legs ought to present speedy worth within the NFL: The Notre Dame product’s 82.8 PFF dashing grade this previous season ranked third amongst draft-eligible quarterbacks. He may instantly turn into among the best operating quarterbacks within the NFL.
- Consistency would be the main space of enchancment: Whether it is accuracy or staying calm within the pocket, Leonard must up his consistency to be a strong NFL starter.
Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes
2024 PFF Grades and Stats (Rank out of 56 Draft-Eligible QBs)
| PFF Overall Grade | 83.5 (Sixteenth) |
| Big-Time Throw % | 4.1% (twenty third) |
| Turnover-Worthy Play % | 2.0% (eleventh) |
| Adjusted Completion % | 78.2% (seventh) |
| Pressure-to-Sack Rate | 12.4% (4th) |
| PFF Clean Pocket Grade | 89.0 (Sixteenth) |
| PFF Under Pressure Grade | 44.6 (thirty eighth) |
Background
Riley Leonard is a 22-year-old, 6-foot-4 and 216-pound quarterback out of Notre Dame. He spent his first three school seasons at Duke, the place began 21 video games earlier than transferring to Notre Dame. Leonard then led Notre Dame to 14 wins and an look within the nationwide championship recreation in 2024.
Strengths
Athleticism
Leonard possesses distinctive athleticism and can instantly turn into among the best operating quarterbacks within the NFL. His 82.8 PFF dashing grade this previous season ranked third amongst draft-eligible quarterbacks, and his 611 yards on designed runs had been the sixth most.
Notre Dame’s run recreation relied on Leonard to be environment friendly together with his carries, and he tallied the fourth-most dashing first downs amongst all quarterbacks. He is a robust, highly effective runner with the mindset that he can overpower any defender. His dashing capability is an instantaneous pathway to him discovering some early success within the NFL.
Limits damaging performs
Leonard makes sound choices, minimizing turnovers, sacks and different damaging outcomes. He excels at maintaining his offense in manageable conditions, due partly to his capability to keep away from forcing the ball into tight home windows and escape strain together with his legs. He boasted the Sixteenth-best turnover-worthy play price and the Twenty second-best pressure-to-sack ratio within the FBS in 2024. Limiting damaging performs was essential to Notre Dame’s success, and Leonard was the driving power.
Weaknesses
Consistency
Leonard’s play could be irritating to look at on account of inconsistency. While he is able to making high-level performs and reveals flashes of a robust psychological recreation, comparable to effectively working to the bottom of his progressions, he additionally struggles to learn out a play and resorts to scrambling or hitting his check-down high early.
That inconsistency isn’t simply evident within the psychological aspect of his recreation. His accuracy can come and go all through a recreation. His total accuracy price in 2024 was 64.9%, the ninth-best clip within the draft class. But his uncatchable throw price on passes focused 10-19 yards downfield was the seventh highest within the draft class. He presently lacks consistency when pressured to throw farther downfield.
Pocket presence
Leonard tends to wrestle to remain calm within the pocket. He likes to go away the pocket early, bailing earlier than the play can absolutely develop. He does have some causes for being just a little skittish within the pocket, because the Notre Dame offensive line struggled at occasions this season, ending with a 67.9 staff PFF pass-blocking grade that ranked 66th in school soccer.
However, when he does keep within the pocket and tries to ship below strain, his mechanics can turn into sloppy. Leonard’s decrease half doesn’t keep constant sufficient for him to throw precisely, resulting in a 35.1% uncatchable price when below strain this previous season.
Summary
Riley Leonard is an especially athletic quarterback who can turn into an actual run-game menace within the NFL. He makes sound choices, which limits turnovers and sacks amongst different damaging performs. He shows moments of high-level play that recommend he has the potential to be a profitable NFL quarterback. However, he struggles with consistency and his accuracy can undergo, notably below strain. When pressured, he can get skittish and abandon clear pockets. He’ll must up his consistency on the subsequent degree; if he does, he could possibly be an honest starter.