smokinandjokin Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Leonhard has really impressed me since his activation. Nice return on the reverse from McGee. Sick block on McGee's TD. Has been around the ball on kick coverage. He's pretty much exactly what scouts said he would be: an undersized playmaker with average speed, who always seems to be around the ball. Any chance he starts for the Bills at safety in 1-2 years??? Or are his size/speed deficiencies too much of a liability as a starting defender?
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Sick block on McGee's TD. 543122[/snapback] Agreed. Leonhard essentially sprung McGee for that TD return--I think he took out two defenders and sealed the entire left side of the field.
Green Bay Bills Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Agreed. Leonhard essentially sprung McGee for that TD return--I think he took out two defenders and sealed the entire left side of the field. 543132[/snapback] That's what he did at Wisconsin, made plays and was unselfish for team. He is the one bright spot for me this year. I also hope Evans keeps coming along, he seems to have big play ability.
VABills Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 No offense, but special teams play doesn't indicate ability on other portions of the game. Stamer is a good St'er but sucks at LB.
smokinandjokin Posted December 27, 2005 Author Posted December 27, 2005 No offense, but special teams play doesn't indicate ability on other portions of the game. Stamer is a good St'er but sucks at LB. 543152[/snapback] Yes of course you are right VA. Coy Wire is an even better example. But at least Leonhard has played the safety position his whole college career, unlike Wire. Just looking at our aging safeties, we will probably have a spot opening up in the next two years. Is there any chance that Leonhard, at 5'8" 190lbs could play 45 plays a game at safety in the NFL? I would probably say no, but at the same time, he's shown he can be a playmaker. He just might have a shot at replacing his fellow UW alum Troy Vincent in centerfield for the Bills. Vincent, at 6'1" 200lbs, is not a ferocious run stuffer. More a last-line-of-defense type guy. Leonhard's instincts and "around-the-ball" style could work back there. On the flip side, teams could throw jump balls right over his head, and have speedsters cruise right by him. I think he's shown enough to deserve a look, whether it ever works out or not.
Rico Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Yes of course you are right VA. Coy Wire is an even better example. But at least Leonhard has played the safety position his whole college career, unlike Wire. Just looking at our aging safeties, we will probably have a spot opening up in the next two years. Is there any chance that Leonhard, at 5'8" 190lbs could play 45 plays a game at safety in the NFL? I would probably say no, but at the same time, he's shown he can be a playmaker. He just might have a shot at replacing his fellow UW alum Troy Vincent in centerfield for the Bills. Vincent, at 6'1" 200lbs, is not a ferocious run stuffer. More a last-line-of-defense type guy. Leonhard's instincts and "around-the-ball" style could work back there. On the flip side, teams could throw jump balls right over his head, and have speedsters cruise right by him. I think he's shown enough to deserve a look, whether it ever works out or not. 543167[/snapback] How big is Sanders on the Colts? Leonhard looks to be close to the same size to me.
VABills Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 How big is Sanders on the Colts? Leonhard looks to be close to the same size to me. 543191[/snapback] Sanders is about as short but he is a tank. He is probably 210-220.
Thailog80 Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Sanders is about as short but he is a tank. He is probably 210-220. 543195[/snapback] Man that guy has HUGE arms also. He's an animal.
Fake-Fat Sunny Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 I aggree that he has been impressive so far. However, his accumulation of some bad penalties (a personal fould for a late hit against the Bengals and the occaisional play where he has been out of position are indicators that he still is a rookie and no one needs to clear a spot on the Wall of Fame for him. Will he start at safety for the Bills in a couple of years or maybe one. The answer is this could well happen but it says more about the gaps we will have at safety as it does about the quality of his play. As it stands right now, the situation is: Milloy- probably gone next year due to contract and age and certainly gone in two years. Vincent- a good ballhawk at safety and not an unreasonable contract. Probably a keeper next year if he plays football but expect injuries to keep him from playing a full season. Certainly gone in two years. Wire- a disappointment as the Bills never really developed him properly making him a safety when he had never played the position at any level of organized ball. He is too small for LB where he was trained and really the only hope for him would have been if he had been focused on ST from the start. There is little possibility of him beinmg our starting safety in 2 years and may be gone next year unless the market mandates a pay cut from his 3rd round pick contract. He simply is not worth a higher cap allocation by the Bills. Baker- Leonhard is about at his level of rookie achievement that Baker had last year when he earned a starting slot on the @2 NFL D. However, his level of production led to him being inactive Sunday on a D that is not a good D. Can Leonhard start in 2 year? Yeah. In fact, he might be the best safety we have next year unless we supplement the position with some quality acqusitions.
Rico Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Sanders is about as short but he is a tank. He is probably 210-220. 543195[/snapback] Yeah, I guess Leonhard's nothing close to that... he may have at least 35-40 lbs on him.
Sound_n_Fury Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 No offense, but special teams play doesn't indicate ability on other portions of the game. Stamer is a good St'er but sucks at LB. 543152[/snapback] I'd be happy if Leonhard had a great career as a special teamer. He reminds me of Tasker...smart, undersized, smart, instinctive, smart.... I'd love to see him on punt returns (which he excelled at in college), but I suppose Roscoe has that job locked up given his draft position.
RI Bills Fan Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 "Tiny" Tony Greene was too small and too slow to play free safety also...
jayg Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Sanders is about as short but he is a tank. He is probably 210-220. 543195[/snapback] 21 Sanders, Bob FS 5'08" 206 02/24/1981 2 Iowa
HarkinBanks Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 He looked pretty fast to me on the reverse kickoff...definitely faster than Kelso ever looked. Also looks like he has moved ahead of Baker on the draft chart. Seems like he will get his shot in training camp next year. We could really use a break finding some good players, hope he is a nice surprise for us.
BEAST MODE BABY! Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 Leonard has always had a knack for the ball. I had a feeling he would be good. And all this talk of him being too small, he played in the Big Ten for crying out loud. He is a guy that makes plays regardless of his size.
Billsjunkie Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 I enjoyed watching him as a Badger. Seems like his heart is helping him out in the big leagues. I hope that he can be a difference maker on this team later on in his career. He sure was at Wisconsin.
BuffaloRebound Posted December 27, 2005 Posted December 27, 2005 I remember watching an ESPN special on him during his Senior year where they showed him throwing down some sick dunks. I think they also said Wisconsin has a dunk contest for its football players and Leonhard won it at 5'8".
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