It sounds like Indianapolis Colts linebacker Shaquille Leonard wants to continue playing for interim head coach Jeff Saturday on a full-term basis.
“He demanded excellence from everybody,” Leonard said of Saturday during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. “That offensive line — I mean, of course, everybody’s going to criticize that offensive line. You see they got better, didn’t they? He came in and made sure that everybody knew exactly what was at stake and what he wanted from each and every player. We’d go play the game and we’d blow a lead or something, that next meeting was what would’ve been needed. I’m going to call you out. I’m going to put you on the big screen and let you know that this is unacceptable.”
Colts owner Jim Irsay was widely criticized by individuals throughout the football community for naming Saturday interim head coach on Nov. 7 because the retired center who was serving as an in-studio analyst for ESPN at the time possessed zero coaching experience.
Indianapolis defeated the Las Vegas Raiders 25-20 in Saturday’s coaching debut but then finished the season with seven straight losses and an overall record of 4-12-1.
One of those defeats involved the Minnesota Vikings turning a 33-0 deficit into a historic 39-36 overtime win.
“I hate that he gets a lot of hate because coming in Week 8, Week 9, and not knowing a coach on your coaching staff … how do you expect him to come in and go 8-0, 9-0, whatever? Give him a full offseason,” Leonard added. “Give him his coaching staff or whatever the case may be and I think that it’d be a great spot.”
On Thursday, The Athletic’s Zak Keefer wrote that he’d “gotten a strong sense that it will not be Saturday who lands the (Colts’) job” over “the past few weeks.” Leonard indicated he’d have Irsay reconsider such a stance ahead of Super Bowl LVII.
