Indianapolis Colts linebacker, Darius Leonard, recently responded to a ranking that left Leonard out of the top three linebackers in the NFL.
Ask any number of fans, players, and media members, who’s the best linebacker in football, and several people will say Darius Leonard of the Indianapolis Colts.
If he’s not someone’s top-overall linebacker, he’s definitely in their top three. Leonard has dominated the league since entering in 2018 and is currently the highest-paid off-ball linebacker in the NFL.
However, PFF recently tweeted out a graphic with the three highest-graded linebackers since the 2020 season. Fred Warner was No. 1, Bobby Wagner was second, and Demario Davis was third.
Leonard didn’t crack the top three and he made sure to let everyone know how hilarious he thought that was. He responded to the tweet with just nine crying laughing emojis.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
— Darius Shaquille Leonard (@dsleon45) May 22, 2022
Darius Leonard laughs at PFF’s grading
Warner, Wagner, and Davis all are some of the league’s best linebackers but Leonard’s laughing is merited. His resume in the NFL should have him in the top three of any kind of linebacker ranking.
PFF has different metrics for grading positions but it’s hard to see how Leonard’s production over the last two seasons wouldn’t grade him in the top three.
In 2020, Darius Leonard had 132 tackles, seven for a loss, three sacks, and three forced fumbles. In 2021, Leonard recorded 122 tackles, four for a loss, four interceptions, and a league-leading eight forced fumbles.
In both of the last two seasons, Leonard was also selected to the Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro each year. If those numbers and accolades don’t make Leonard a top three linebacker, it’s unclear what will.
Unfortunately, this isn’t unfamiliar territory for Darius Leonard, and that’s probably why all he could do is laugh. Since stepping foot in the NFL, Leonard has been disrespected and underrated.
When he was drafted many felt that he was a terrible selection and went entirely too early, but he quickly proved everyone wrong. Leonard also didn’t receive a single DPOY vote after his phenomenal season last year.
He has been vocal about the Colts not getting the respect they deserve and blames some of it on being in a small market. However, Leonard vows that he and the team will keep going hard until everyone has no choice but to respect them.
Although Leonard may be laughing now, this will certainly be used as more fuel for him and the Colts to dominate everyone next season.
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