Indianapolis Colts linebacker Shaquille Leonard is still on the road to recovery from a second surgery to repair a nerve issue that kept him out for essentially the entire 2022 season.
The last calendar year hasn’t been easy for The Maniac, who has typically been one of the most reliable players on the defensive side of the ball since entering the league in 2018.
But a complicated nerve issue that required two surgeries (one after returning midseason) has put a murky cloud over Leonard’s timeline to return.
The 27-year-old opened up about the difficult time he went through over the last year.
“Oh man, last year was by far one of the hardest years of my life. Just fighting through injury and you know, it was tough,” Leonard told reporters Wednesday. “Mentally, it was really, really bad.”
Leonard missed the offseason workouts in 2022 and never made it back for training camp. When he did return during the regular season, he suffered a concussion and broken nose that required surgery, forcing him to miss another three games.
Upon returning from that recovery, Leonard simply didn’t look like himself. It wasn’t until interim head coach Jeff Saturday suggested the All-Pro linebacker shut it down in order to get to the root of the issue.
So that’s what he did, and Leonard missed the remainder of the season and what was the continuation of a tumultuous campaign for Indy.
“Seeing the guys out there fighting for a win each Sunday and me standing on the sideline – too many times after the game, I’m in the locker room just boo-hooing,” Leonard said. “I feel like I let the team down not being out there to help them win. I felt somewhat embarrassed coming in each day, injured, not getting better.”
Given what Leonard means to the Colts both in the locker room and on the field, no one is going to hold it against him when it comes to the difficult recovery from a nerve issue.
Even when Leonard tried to enter the role of being an extra coach on the sideline, the competitor in him made that difficult.
“This game is very demanding mentally, physically and emotionally. That’s what I signed up for and I’m just going to continue to work, be the best version of myself and get back,” said Leonard. “So, last year I felt like I was a cheerleader and tried to be a coach at some point, tried to get the guys some cues on what I see to try to stay close to the game but you know, it still sucks standing on that sideline.”
As for what the future holds for Leonard, it’s unclear. We’re unlikely to see him work during OTAs and minicamp even though he said progress is being made in recovery. It was made clear Leonard is far from resuming on-field activities.
“I’m not gonna say I’m all the way clear because I’m not doing too much running right now,” Leonard said.
But there are still some encouraging developments as Leonard said he feels more explosive than he did even earlier this offseason.
“I’m feeling better. Feeling a whole lot better than what I did at any point of the year last year. Moving around a whole lot better, I’ve got more power in the calf. It’s still not where I want to be,” Leonard said.
We’ll see what the season has in store for Leonard and while we may not see him during the offseason workouts, The Maniac does appear to be in better spirits.
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