Darius Leonard, Colts Reportedly Agree to 5-Year, $99.25M Contract Extension

Zach Bolinger/Associated Press

Linebacker Darius Leonard and the Indianapolis Colts agreed to a five-year, $99.25 million contract extension Sunday.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported Leonard will be the highest-paid inside linebacker in football.

Leonard was a second-round pick in 2018 and quickly made an impact in the NFL, winning Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2018 and All-Pro first-team honors in 2018 and 2020.

Through his first three seasons in Indianapolis, the 25-year-old has compiled a staggering 416 combined tackles, 22 pass deflections, 15 sacks, seven interceptions, nine forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries and one touchdown. That effort earned him a new deal entering his fourth season, a year before he was set to become an unrestricted free agent.

Leonard earned $7.2 million on his rookie contract. Spotrac projected his value at $19 million per year and expected his next contract could reach four years and $76.8 million, which would make him the third-highest paid linebacker in the league behind Khalil Mack and Von Miller.

For his part, it never appeared the South Carolina State product had any concern over a deal coming together—not with how the Colts had treated him through three years.

“They take value in me,” Leonard told NFL Network in May. “Hopefully, that will show. I think I put in enough work the past three years, I give it my all day in and day out, never miss a day. Once I step on that field I give everything I got, and they know that. Hopefully, we get everything settled and hopefully we’re good to go.”

Now that the deal has been settled, Leonard and the Colts can focus on the future and getting Indianapolis back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2010.