'Dominant' Patriots DT Has Been Blocking Kicks Since High School

On Dec. 12, 2020, in a Florida state semifinal game between Miami Palmetto Senior High School and Kissimmee Osceola, Leonard Taylor III blocked a field goal. Five years later, Taylor blocked another field goal -- this one on a much larger stage.

The now-New England Patriots defensive lineman got his right hand up on Denver Broncos kicker Wil Lutz's 45-yard field goal attempt, and by getting his fingers just high enough, tipped it to go wide left.

"I knew he was on that team, so I paid super close attention," Mike Manasco, Taylor's high school coach, told Patriots on SI. "So the first thing in my head was like, he got a piece of that. I wasn't sure if it was him or the other kid next to him, but I was like, 'I think Leonard just got a piece of that.' Then when they zoomed in, everyone in my house went nuts."

Manasco has been the Miami Palmetto Senior High School football coach since 2009, and said you'd be hard-pressed to find a better player in the school's history than Taylor. From day one, he would disrupt the offense so much in practice that it forced the coaching staff to actually remove him from the field.

Leonard Taylor’s field goal block against the Broncos isn’t the first time he’s done that.

Here’s him in the Florida state semifinals back in 2020, blocking a field goal against Kissimmee Osceola. pic.twitter.com/EpsYjCkXRJ
— Ethan Hurwitz (@HurwitzSports) January 30, 2026

"I knew he was going to play on Sunday," Manasco said. "From the first practice, he's just that talented. There were spring practices where we would have 30 college coaches watching our practice, and I would have to pull him out just so the offense could run a play. That's how dominant this young man was."

Taylor became a staple in the Manasco household. From practices every day, to long drives for recruiting trips, the future NFL player became quite close with his coach. He even picked up some of Manasco's favorite songs in the process.

Leonard Taylor III Has Found Ways To Help The Patriots Make The Super Bowl

"Just going on all the recruiting trips with him, all the rides home with him," Manasco said. "I listen to country music and, and he would start by humming, and then by the time you're going on, he's singing those songs. He's just a great kid."

Taylor parlayed that on-field dominance and continued work ethic off of it into a scholarship at the University of Miami. Staying home for Taylor, he was able to contribute to the Hurricanes' defense in a major way in his freshman season. The five-star recruit played in nine games and had a team-high 7.5 tackles for loss to boot.

Now-New England Patriots defensive tackle Leonard Taylor III and his high school coach Mike Manasco speaking to media | Contributed by Mike Manasco

By the end of his college tenure, he had put together a solid resume to, like Manasco said, play on Sundays. In 2022, he was named an honorable mention to the All-ACC team. But he didn't hear his name called during the 2024 draft -- "He (was) getting snubbed by not getting drafted for whatever reason," Manasco said.

So instead of getting selected, he signed an undrafted free agent contract with the New York Jets. That didn't come without trials and tribulations, either. A rotational player in his rookie season, new head coach Aaron Glenn decided he wasn't a fit anymore and released him this past October.

But what's one team's trash is another's treasure.

Taylor found his way onto the Patriots' practice squad, and soon, became a weekly addition to the active game day roster.

By the Patriots earned a playoff spot, and then the AFC East, and then kept winning postseason games, it was almost a foregone conclusion that Taylor would be activated each week.

Manasco Was A Proud Coach Watching The Patriots Win In Denver

And in Denver, he made the biggest play of his young career

"All I know is we’ve seen the ball move and then we got some knock back," Taylor said postgame. "Then next thing I know, I just jumped in the air and I got a taste of the ball. I got a hit of the ball, but it was exciting. Just the rush and the adrenaline coming through my body knowing that I helped the team."

During the game, Manasco was hosting a watch party for the AFC championship. When it was over, his former player was headed to Super Bowl LX.

All because of a field goal block that Manasco knows all too well (and still might not be over (Miami Palmetto lost that game to Kissimmee Osceola after allowing a late touchdown).

"It's kind of like a full circle thing, right? Like you see these kids as young people, and you grow them and you know the potential and you know the talent, but you also know all the adversity and all the things that come in the way of this stuff," Manasco said. "To see him battle through that, and not getting drafted and getting released, and then getting picked up and having to battle practice squad -- which I know he's better than that. Seeing that and knowing what he's doing and knowing how positive he is, and talking to him on the phone and just seeing how much he loves football. You couldn't be a prouder coach, mentor, father figure than I am right now."

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