Riley Leonard took his talents to Notre Dame for the 2024 season, ultimately leading him to the National Championship game against Ohio State. Unfortunately, he and his squad fell just one game short of becoming champs, but the quarterbacks’ journey isn’t over yet. He’s heading into the upcoming NFL Draft with a new chip on his shoulder after losing to Ohio State.
Height: 6 ft – 4 in
Weight: 216 lb
Age: 22
Position: Quarterback
College: Notre Dame
College Career Summary:
Riley Leonard spent four seasons in college, three of them being spent with the Duke Blue Devils. In his freshman campaign, he only saw one start and seven-game appearances, but his role quickly expanded by his second season. In 2022, he appeared in 13 games for Duke and led the team to a 9-4 overall record while throwing for just under 3,000 yards. Unfortunately, he only managed to play seven games in his junior season at Duke, going 4-3 in those games and throwing for 1,102 total passing yards. By the end of this season, he decided to hit the transfer portal and head to Notre Dame to become their next starting quarterback. With his experience at Duke, he was able to start in 16 games and helped lead the team to a National Championship appearance against Ohio State. While they lost that game, Leonard still managed a 14-2 overall record. When speaking of his accolades through those four years, he was able to become the 2022 Military Bowl MVP, the 2025 Sugar Bowl Offensive MVP, and the 2025 Orange Bowl Offensive MVP.
2024 Season
Games Played: 16
Yards: 2,861 passing, 906 rushing
Touchdowns: 21 passing, 17 rushing
Career Stats:
- 37 games started
- 7,311 passing yards
- 81 total touchdowns
- 413 rush attempts
- 1,022 pass attempts
Passing/Rushing/Receiving/Defensive Metrics:
- 2 yards per carry throughout his career
- 2 yards per completion throughout his career
- 18 interceptions across his career
Strengths:
- Elite athlete who can make plays with his feet
- Veteran awareness in the pocket pre-snap
- Strong deep ball accuracy
- Maneuvers the pocket extremely effectively
- Considered a natural born leader
- Quick processor when running a rhythm passing game
Weaknesses:
- Pressure can throw off his passing routines
- Stuck playing hero ball sometimes, taking negative plays
- Could get stuck on his first read too often
- Medical concerns that popped up during his time at Duke
High Pressure Situations/Clutch Gene:
Leonard has played well in high-pressure and clutch situations, but he isn’t the best in these scenarios. For example, he helped Notre Dame beat Penn State in the Orange Bowl this season by a score of 27-24. However, he only had 223 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions with 18 rushes for 35 yards and a score on the ground. It wasn’t the best performance, yet he still found a way to help his team come out on top. This has mostly been what we’ve seen from him in big games. In another playoff win against Georgia, Leonard only threw for 90 yards and a touchdown without a turnover while adding 14 rushes for 80 yards. Going back further than just this season with Notre Dame, he won the Offensive MVP award with Duke during the Military Bowl in his sophomore season against UCF. He completed 19 of his 28 pass attempts for 173 yards, no passing touchdowns, and no interceptions, but he did have 10 rushes for 63 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. While Leonard doesn’t exactly scream as a clutch player who can lead big drives, he also has found a way to win a handful of big games despite modest stat lines. So, while he can win these games, he’s not the most clutch quarterback that you can target in this draft.
NFL Projection And Fantasy Relevance:
Likely, we won’t see Riley Leonard get taken off the board until later on in the NFL Draft. The most common projection up to this point is that he’ll go at some point in the sixth or seventh round. He’s a very solid dual-threat quarterback which will intrigue many NFL teams. However, he did suffer from some injuries that will cause teams to pause in their scouting of him. On top of that, he didn’t record phenomenal passing numbers, only playing two full seasons in the process. This relates to fantasy football because it is extremely likely that he doesn’t come into the league as a starter, nor is he going to be drafted to become one. I would think of Leonard as a guy who will step into a franchise as a clear backup quarterback. A guy that the team feels confident in allowing to start if anything happens to their current starter. For example, he could easily land with the Miami Dolphins behind Tua Tagovailoa. They need a quarterback who can lead if Tua misses more time, and Leonard is young enough to stay long-term if Tua is forced to retire early. Regardless, don’t anticipate Leonard to be a league-winner in 2025 for you, perhaps he might start at some point in his career, but it won’t be immediate.
I find it fascinating that Leonard has been so productive with his legs, as his athleticism has been a huge factor in his game throughout college. However, given that he’s already dealt with some injuries that have forced him to miss a good chunk of time across multiple seasons, I’m not sure how great that ability is. Aside from that, his passing would worry me. He’s got a great deep ball, but he has struggled under pressure, he’s gotten stuck on his first read too many times, and he’s gotten caught playing hero ball. There are negatives to his game as a passer that might be too strong to overlook, which is why he’ll fall into the later rounds. His potential as a runner and as a leader of the locker room will get him drafted to an NFL roster, but there will need to be serious work as a full-time pocket passer to get him ready to start at some point in the NFL.