3-time Colts All-Pro Shaquille Leonard set to announce retirement at Sunday's game against Raiders

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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Former Indianapolis Colts star Shaquille Leonard introduced himself to the team during his first training camp practice by intercepting Andrew Luck.

It didn't take the linebacker long to show the rest of the league he could change games, too.

The three-time All-Pro and 2018 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year will announce his formal retirement during a halftime ceremony Sunday, team officials said Wednesday. Leonard also will bang the team's anvil before the Colts host the Las Vegas Raiders.

For the South Carolina State alum who played 75 games over six seasons in the NFL, all but five with the Colts, it seems like a fitting sendoff.

“He played the game the way it was supposed to be played," said Colts linebacker Zaire Franklin, who also was part of Indy's rookie class in 2018. “He worked as hard as he possibly could. He gave every single thing he had to this game. I watched him limp around here with one foot and go take the ball away. Obviously, I would have loved if we could have been able to continue to play for a number of years, but he's a person that never cheated the game, never cheated the grind.”

Leonard was a second-round pick, No. 36 overall, and quickly emerged one of the league's top defenders because of his penchant for forcing turnovers and making plays all over the field.

Franklin got his first real glimpse in Week 2 of the 2018 season when Leonard slept in the bathtub of their hotel room because Franklin snored and had the flu. The next day Leonard had 19 tackles, 15 solos, one sack, one forced fumble and one pass defensed.

“I told him 'You need to sleep in that tub more often,” Franklin said.

The rewards followed.

Leonard finished the season with 163 tackles and was selected an All-Pro along with Colts first-round pick Quenton Nelson.

They were the first rookie teammates to earn All-Pro honors since Hall of Famers Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers did it with the Chicago Bears in 1965.

Naturally, he became a fan favorite, too, finding motivation in every conceivable corner — from being overlooked by bigger schools when he was recruited out of high school, not being a first-round pick, even not being selected to the Pro Bowl as a rookie.

But around the league, everyone knew his name and his reputation.

"He’s one of those guys that was like, ‘Hey, this is a game-changer,’ and really, obviously, ball security was preached a whole bunch with him,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said. “It was like ’Hey, we’re going through the line of scrimmage, you’ve got to have that thing high and tight because (Leonard) is coming after it. And he was a sideline-to-sideline guy that could fly around and make a ton of plays.”

He started his career with four straight 100-tackle seasons and it seemed nothing slowed Leonard down — until he suffered a back injury. Despite reluctantly undergoing season-ending surgery in 2022, Leonard was never the same. His productivity dropped in 2023, which led to his release from the Colts, and he finished the season with the Philadelphia Eagles. Leonard never played another game.

Leonard finished his career with 637 tackles, 34 tackles for loss, 16 sacks, 31 passes defensed, 12 interceptions and 17 forced fumbles. He also returned an interception for a score.

On the Colts career lists, Leonard ranks fifth in tackles (614), seventh in tackles for loss (32), third in forced fumbles (17) and second in games with 10 or more tackles (27). He also was Indy's Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award selection and the team's Ed Block Courage Award winner in 2022.

“He's just a crazy dude, man, but I'm just glad he's honored, getting the flowers he deserved,” Franklin said. “We've had some tough times and some good times, but I'm just glad he's getting the celebration he deserves.”

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