Darius Leonard and the Indianapolis Colts came up short of making the playoffs due to a brutal Week 18 loss against the Jacksonville Jaguars. That loss will be talked about all offseason long and the fans will remain mad until the start of next season. However, that does not take away from just how good the superstar linebacker was in 2021.

Over the last couple of years, Leonard has been making himself a household name. He has become one of the most feared defensive players in the entire league.

Pro Football Focus shared a number that will blow the minds of most fans. It’s just another bit of proof that Leonard is an elite superstar and deserves more attention than he has been getting from the media. Playing for the Colts won’t get him much, but his production should.

When you think about the most run dominant defenders in the league, Leonard isn’t a name that comes to mind. Aaron Donald certainly is, but not Leonard. To see that they are tied in that category is impressive.

Granted, this is just a grade from Pro Football Focus. It isn’t a statistic that you’ll see on the box scores. But, PFF is very widely respected and this grade shows how extremely dominant Leonard was this year.

During the 2021 season with the Colts, Leonard ended up recording 122 total tackles to go along with eight forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, four interceptions, and eight defended passes. Talk about stuffing the actual stat sheet. Leonard was a force all over the field.

Every defense needs to have a guy that can force a turnover at a crucial point in a game. Leonard has perfected the craft of punching the football away from opposing players. He had eight forced fumbles, that number is not a fluke.

All of that being said, Darius Leonard should be happy with the season he put together, but he wants to win. This isn’t a year that will sit well with him all offseason long. Expect to see an even more motivated and dominant version of Leonard next season as he looks to lead the Colts back to the playoffs.