Colts draft pick: Leonard Riley’s draft profile reveals his strength and weaknesses with the new NFL pick.
With the 189th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts selected Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard.
Leonard (6’4″, 216) is fresh off of an accomplished college career that took him from Duke to Notre Dame and an appearance in the most recent National Championship. He’s a multi-dimensional QB, also rushing for over 2,100 yards and 36 touchdowns.
Former Notre Dame and Duke quarterback Riley Leonard, an Alabama native, was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL draft on Saturday.
Leonard, who played his high school football at Fairhope, went with the No. 189 overall pick. He led the Fighting Irish to the College Football Playoff national championship game this past January.
Leonard has adequate size and is an above-average competitor with good toughness. However, he fails to hit the mark as a pro-caliber passer. He’s a dual-threat quarterback who falls more firmly on the side of grit than gifted. He can make controlled throws inside his comfort level, but his accuracy and timing dip when he has to work beyond primary reads. He’s relatively careful with the football in the red area and in the face of pressure. He can move the sticks with his legs on called runs or when pressured.
The Colts have been looking into Leonard throughout the pre-draft process. Colts head coach Shane Steichen attended Riley’s Notre Dame pro day and spoke with him one-on-one at the event. The pair also have relationships with former Colts quarterback Philip Rivers. Leonard has been trained by him, and Steichen was a former coach of Rivers’ with the Los Angeles Chargers.
As a passer, Leonard is more of a quick-strike Gardner Minshew type whose strength lies in the RPO game. As a runner, think Daniel Jones.
Leonard joins a QB group featuring Jones, Anthony Richardson, and Jason Bean. Jones and Richardson will compete for the starting role while Leonard and Bean battle for whatever role remains as the roster’s QB3 or a practice squader.
