Jaguars vs. Colts: Shaquille Leonard Clears Concussion Protocol

The Colts will seemingly have their star linebacker on hand vs. the Jaguars on Sunday.

The Jacksonville Jaguars could see a big return in Week 1. 

The Jaguars' Week 1 divisional opponent could be getting one of their top players back on the field, as the Indianapolis Colts could see the 2023 debut of Pro Bowl and All-Pro linebacker Shaquille Leonard after he cleared concussion protocol on Thursday.

Shaquille Leonard has cleared concussion protocol, per Colts.

Expecting to hear from him shortly during open media session.

— Kevin Bowen (@KBowen1070) September 7, 2023

Due to a back injury and a concussion, Leonard only played in three games last season, neither of which was against the Jaguars. In the four years before then, though, Leonard was a three-time Pro Bowler and First-Team All-Pro defender, recording 538 tackles, 30 tackles for loss, 15 sacks, 30 pass breakups, 11 interceptions, 17 forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries, and 20 quarterback hits.

“He’s a great player. I didn’t play against him last year, but my rookie year we did and he’s just a guy that you always have to know where he’s at," Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said this week about Leonard.

"He’s got a knack for one, getting takeaways and punching the ball out or in coverage. Reading quarterbacks eyes and making plays on the ball, he’s just really athletic and moves sideline-to-sideline. He diagnoses plays really quickly, he’s a great player and has great instinct. If he ends up playing, it’s a guy you know who is out there and you always know where he’s at. We got to be prepared for whoever it is. He’s a great player.”

If Leonard is in the lineup, the Jaguars will know they have to account for his presence as they prepare to face off against a Gus Bradley defense that they found success against a year ago. 

"You got to go play the game, but I think with this coordinator, Coach Bradley has done a great job in all the places he’s been. He does what he does, he has his system and of course he’s going to have some wrinkles in some new stuff, being in a division opponent, especially playing them twice last year," Lawrence said. They’re a really disciplined group, they do what they do, and they do it well. That’s where he makes his money, is by doing that. 

"Guys are really well coached and they’re in the right spot. Even if you know what they’re doing, you still have to beat them and vice versa. If they know what we’re doing, they still have to cover us and do all of that. That’s how the game is played, sometimes there’s not as much trickery as you might think. You’re going to have some plans and secrets and some stuff up your sleeve. At the end of the day, you coach your guys to do something and play assignment football and they do a really good job of that so we got to go beat them.”