Colts Select QB Riley Leonard with 189th Pick in Draft

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With the 189th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts selected Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard.
Leonard (6'4", 216) is fresh off of an accomplished college career that took him from Duke to Notre Dame and an appearance in the most recent National Championship. He's a multi-dimensional QB, also rushing for over 2,100 yards and 36 touchdowns.
FIT WITH THE COLTS
The Colts have been looking into Leonard throughout the pre-draft process. Colts head coach Shane Steichen attended Riley's Notre Dame pro day and spoke with him one-on-one at the event. The pair also have relationships with former Colts quarterback Philip Rivers. Leonard has been trained by him, and Steichen was a former coach of Rivers' with the Los Angeles Chargers.
As a passer, Leonard is more of a quick-strike Gardner Minshew type whose strength lies in the RPO game. As a runner, think Daniel Jones.
Leonard joins a QB group featuring Jones, Anthony Richardson, and Jason Bean. Jones and Richardson will compete for the starting role while Leonard and Bean battle for whatever role remains as the roster's QB3 or a practice squader.
PREVIOUS PICKS
- TE Tyler Warren, Penn State
- DE JT Tuimoloau, Ohio State
- CB Justin Walley, Minnesota
- OT Jalen Travis, Iowa State
- RB DJ Giddens, Kansas State
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Jake Arthur is the co-deputy editor of Indianapolis Colts on SI and has covered the NFL and the Indianapolis Colts for a decade. He is a member of the Professional Football Writers of America (PFWA), and his works have been featured on SBNation, MSN, Yahoo, and Bleacher Report. He has also contributed to multiple NFL Draft guides and co-hosts the Locked On Colts podcast.
Follow @JakeArthurNFL