INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) -- Heading into his second year with the Colts, quarterback Riley Leonard is competing with Anthony Richardson for the backup quarterback role.
With mandatory minicamp taking place next week, Colts head coach Shane Steichen has liked what he's seen from Leonard so far this offseason.
“He’s been really good," Steichen said. "He’s got great command in the huddle. He’s continuing to learn the offense, growing in that nature, going through his reads, going through his progressions, working on his accelerated vision and going through that stuff. It’s been good to see.”
Daniel Jones has been recovering from his Achilles injury, participating in seven-on-seven drills on Monday. Previously, he had only been participating in individual drills.
As a result, Leonard has gotten more reps throughout the offseason.
"Just having the opportunity to get more reps this summer will be really cool," Leonard said in April. "Daniel (Jones) is going to be right there, right beside me. We're obviously really close, so it'll be good to progress with him.”
One of the things Leonard has focused on this offseason is digging into the offense more. Steichen said he has been "studying like crazy" in the classroom and he has seen its rewards on the practice field.
“I think those take place in the meetings rooms of how we’re trying to attack certain coverages from a pass game standpoint, from a run game standpoint – things we’re looking for, trying to take advantage of," Steichen said. "That’s where the accelerated vision will come into play. The more you know the offense and why we’re doing certain things and you see certain looks and certain things on tape that the defenses are doing, obviously you can speed up your process when it comes to that.”
Leonard appeared in five games in his rookie season, starting the Week 18 game against the Houston Texans. He threw for 415 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions in 2025, and added two rushing touchdowns.
