Here’s why Colts linebacker Shaq Leonard is going to love Shane Steichen
The Indianapolis Colts hired Shane Steichen as the team’s next head coach and he’s probably already winning over Shaq Leonard.
Last week, linebacker Shaq Leonard was advocating for Jeff Saturday to become the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts. Ultimately, the Colts hired Shane Steichen and Saturday moved on to his next chapter. Although Leonard doesn’t have any experience with Steichen, he is probably going to be a big fan of Steichen for the same reason that he wanted Saturday to become the team’s coach.
When Shaquille Leonard was passionately endorsing Jeff Saturday, he explained that he thought Saturday was a good coach for the Colts because he demanded excellence. In multiple interviews, Leonard expressed how Saturday held everyone accountable and how he never walked past a mistake. Saturday was tough on players and would demand that they did everything right in their preparation.
Shaq Leonard loved playing for Jeff Saturday - "He's going to demand excellence" pic.twitter.com/9T25WsRYiI
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) February 10, 2023
Leonard explained that Indy needed that type of culture in the franchise. He argued how having a standard like that in place would trickle down from the coaching staff to the team leaders to every player on the roster. With everyone meeting that standard, the Colts would be able to have consistent success. Leonard ultimately said that even if it wasn’t Jeff Saturday, Indy’s next coach needed to have the ability to set that kind of culture.
Luckily, it seems like that’s what Indianapolis got in Steichen. During Steichen’s introductory press conference, one of the noteworthy moments came when Steichen was asked what’s something he learned from Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, that he’ll be taking with him. Steichen explained that Sirianni never let things slide and always held any and everybody accountable at all times.
Shane Steichen on what he learned from Nick Sirianni in Philly: “He never let anything slide,” he says of holding top players accountable. He stresses that.
— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) February 14, 2023
Shane Steichen will demand excellence from Colts
In addition to this lesson learned from Sirianni, Steichen also talked about how important it is to stand on what you believe in. He explained that it’s important to stay consistent and true to your vision and values every day. That’s similar to what Leonard said when he explained that he wanted a coach that’s going to “stand by his principles from day one all the way to the end of the year.”
Steichen also repeatedly used the term obsessed, talking about players and coaches being obsessed with their craft and winning. Ultimately, Steichen seems to have the exact mindset that Shaquille Leonard wanted in a head coach. Now it’s time for the two to set the culture and get Indianapolis back on the right track. With Leonard returning healthy next season to make the defense even better, and Steichen hopefully fixing the offense, the Colts should be on their way back to contender status soon.
