The ball is in Shaq’s court now.
Free agent linebacker Shaq Leonard visited Cowboys headquarters on Tuesday. And while many within the organization- and the fanbase- had hoped that the front office wouldn’t let the four-time All-Pro leave without having inked a deal, Leonard will, in fact, follow through on a planned visit with the Philadelphia Eagles next.
NFL insider Dianna Russini says that the 28-year-old will make a decision on which team to sign with over the coming weekend… just days before the divisional rivals face each other in Arlington in Week 14.
LB Shaq Leonard, whose visit with Dallas went “well” left without a deal.
He is off to visit Philadelphia. I was told he will make his decision over the weekend, per source.— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) November 28, 2023
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones confirmed during a Tuesday morning radio phone-in that Leonard was at The Star and said that he would be personally meeting with the former Colts star as part of his visit.
“It’s not real hard to look and see what kind of player he’s been. He’s been outstanding during his career. We’ll want to check his health, see where he is,” Jones told 105.3 The Fan’s Shan and Bobby. “That’s what he’s doing right now as we’re speaking. And I’ll have a little lunch with him while he’s here,” Jones said.
Leonard had back surgery after the 2021 season to correct a nerve impingement issue. A setback in mid-2022 put him on injured reserve before the season was over. He saw a decrease in snaps for Indianapolis this year, despite him saying he felt fully recovered. The Colts waived their 2018 second-round draft pick on Nov. 21.
The feeling, though, in Dallas (and apparently Philadelphia) is that a slightly-less-than-100% Leonard is still an improvement to a linebacking corps looking to make a deep playoff run, especially with Indy footing the vast majority of his $6.1 million bill for the rest of the season.
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“A player like him, you don’t have any questions. His contribution away from the football team is well known,” Jones explained. “He’s a big positive on a team. He has great respect [from his teammates], has great experience. … When you’ve played as long as he’s played, at the level he’s played, then this isn’t a hard scouting job.”
It is, admittedly, a little harder when the player is getting the VIP treatment in someone else’s building.
Hopefully the Cowboys sufficiently wooed Leonard while he was in theirs to make the decision a slam-dunk for the South Carolina native.
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