“I put my heart into the game. Without it, I don’t know what I’d be doing.”
It’s March 11, 2020, and Maryland running back prospect Javon Leake is still looking forward to his pro day. The Terrapins junior attended the NFL combine in Indianapolis in February, and while he was generally happy with his performance there—including a vertical jump of 34 inches and a broad jump of 125 inches—he’d like a re-do on his 4.65-second 40-yard dash.
“I loved the combine, to be able to be coached by those coaches and be around those running backs. Just to be there was a blessing, but I wasn’t too happy with my 40 time,” Leake says over the phone. “Everything else I was good with. But for me personally, I just want to fix my 40 time.”
Of course, in early April, we know now that Leake won’t have a pro day at Maryland. In another draft cycle, he would have had an opportunity to run the 40-yard dash again for NFL scouts and could have participated in pre-draft visits to sell himself to his would-be future teams. That’s not the case this year, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to hold the sports world in a vice grip.
Leake will just have to hope that a combination of his film and his combine performance is enough to convince NFL scouts he’d be a welcomed addition to their team in 2020. “Game film is a more accurate indicator of my speed,” he says. If Leake does have further contact with NFL teams, it will be virtual.
The 21-year-old is certainly on the NFL’s radar. While Leake declined to confirm how many teams he interviewed with at the combine, he spoke with “a lot” of franchises. He was confident in his interviewing skills because his mom has been helping him refine them for years. “At the combine, you have to talk to a lot of people. My mother got me on being professional when you talk to people, good eye contact in interviews, she got me started on that in high school,” Leake says. “Just doing that with my mom really helped me throughout college.”
Leake is widely considered to be a Tevin Coleman clone. In 2019, the Terrapins gave him more opportunities to showcase his skills, and he took advantage of them hungrily, leading his team in rushing with 736 yards on 102 carries for an average of 7.2 yards per attempt. In six starts, he found the end zone eight times in 12 games. By the end of his career, Leake scored on average one rushing touchdown for every 8.5 carries. His film shows what the stats don’t: Good instincts and an ability to process the defense without skipping a beat.
When it comes to running backs and the NFL draft, a modest number of touches can either flag inexperience or be of relief to teams that prefer a back with plenty of tread on his tires. Leake is hoping teams see his 155 touches over three seasons as the latter, and is eager to show what he can do on special teams to secure his roster spot.
“I talked to a lot of coaches at the combine, and all of them said the same thing, which is special teams,” Leake said. “They were telling me how guys in the league last a long time playing special teams, stuff like that.”
“Knowing the team player I am, I’ll play kick returner, running back, gunner,” Leake added. “I like doing stuff. I’m just learning. As a rookie, I don’t expect to start. I just expect to learn.”
The hunger for the game has been there since Leake started playing football in eighth grade. When recruiting season came around, his top three programs were Louisville, Tennessee and Maryland. Quarterback Lamar Jackson was a huge pro in the Louisville column, Leake admits, but when he spoke with former Maryland head coach D.J. Durkin, it sealed the deal.
“At Maryland, the atmosphere and everything, I just thought it was home,” Leake says. “Talking with Coach Durkin, I just felt like it was the right spot for me.”
Leake had the same feeling when he began entertaining calls from agents near the end of his junior season. “Throughout the season agents kind of hit you up, and the last couple games I started feeling like I was about to make a decision,” Leake says. “It was kind of like recruiting again. I got to know a couple of them, and just like with Maryland, I made my decision.” Leake signed with Jon Perzley of Sportstars, which kick-started one of the most important seasons of his life: NFL draft preparation.
After finishing their season and signing with an agent, NFL draft prospects will often train at a top facility, usually supported in whole or in part by their agencies. Leake trained at EXOS in Pensacola, an immersive program that saw him retool everything from his diet to his workouts.
“I was on a meal plan that they gave us,” Leake says. “They were giving us all kinds of healthy stuff. I just follow what they were giving us. Fish, green beans, potatoes or rice; breakfast would be like french toast, oatmeal, eggs. It was always healthy.”
Though he came in lifting a lot of heavy weight, EXOS had Leake shift his training about two weeks before he left for Indianapolis, in preparation for the combine and the specific drills found therein. “We had to relax a little bit,” Leake says. “They did change up the workouts probably two weeks out from the combine, a lot more stretching, stuff like that.”
Given how many months of his life he’s spent solely focused on making the best impression he can ahead of the NFL draft, it’s hard for Leake to digest the fact that there’s nothing else he can do to stand out. But he hopes his demonstrated big-play ability and special teams prowess, combined with his hunger, lead to his name being called in what is sure to go down as the strangest NFL draft process on the books.
“I come from a difficult background. I’m a great team person, I get along with everybody. I’ll bring that to a program. I do this for my family and make a difference for where I’m from,” Leake says.
As for who he’ll be with on draft day as he waits for that coveted phone call, one crucial person in his life will be missing: his stepfather, Joel Simpson. He’s not Leake’s biological dad, but he’s his dad, Leake explains. Simpson has been in prison since 2016, and isn’t due to be released until May, after the NFL draft has concluded. But the physical absence between them has not diminished the bond he and Leake share.
“My dad tries to call me every day. He gets one phone call a day,” Leake says. “We all stay in contact. My mom is my number one supporter; my dad tries to follow as much as he can. He’s seen my games on the TV in there. It’s pretty cool that he’s still following me.”
After the draft concludes on April 25 and Leake finds out which team he’ll be suiting up for in 2020, he’s looking forward to finally hosting Simpson at a game in-person. As for whether he’ll hear his name called in the draft or Perzley will be fielding calls for his services as an undrafted free agent, Leake isn’t concerned. He’s just looking forward to the opportunity.
“Being drafted or being an undrafted free agent, whatever happens is gonna be a blessing,” Leake says. “I’m just gonna be fortunate to be in that position and show my talent as much as I can.”
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