Rick Leonard (born November 22, 1996) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

offensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Florida State, where he started out as a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is p ...

before moving to offensive tackle. He was drafted by the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

in the fourth round of the

2018 NFL Draft The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first dra ...

and has since been a member of several other teams.

College career

A four-star recruit, Leonard committed to Florida State in 2014 as a

, over offers from

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

, Clemson,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to ...

, Washington, and

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, among others. In his freshman season, he played in four games as a reserve. Leonard compiled five tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss as a sophomore and played in all 13 games. After two seasons on defense, he transitioned to the offensive line before the 2016 season. He started the first three games at right tackle in 2016, before being replaced. Leonard regained his starting role for the final three games of the season. In 2017, Leonard started all 13 games at left tackle for the Seminoles.

Professional career

New Orleans Saints

Leonard was drafted by the

in the fourth round, 127th overall, of the

. On May 10, 2018, Leonard signed his rookie contract with the Saints. He was waived on September 1, 2018 and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was released on October 2, 2018.

Los Angeles Rams

On October 9, 2018, Leonard was signed to the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC Wes ...

' practice squad. He was released on November 6, 2018.

Arizona Cardinals

On November 14, 2018, Leonard was signed to the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division, an ...

practice squad.

Houston Texans

On January 9, 2019, Leonard signed a reserve/future contract with the Houston Texans. The Texans waived him on August 31 during final roster cuts. On September 1, 2019, Leonard was signed to the Houston Texans practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Texans on January 13, 2020. On September 5, 2020, Leonard was waived by the Texans.

Arizona Cardinals (second stint)

On September 22, 2020, Leonard was signed to the Arizona Cardinals practice squad. He was released on October 1, 2020, and later re-signed to the practice squad on October 20. Leonard was released on November 24, 2020.

Washington Football Team

Leonard signed with the

Washington Football Team The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) E ...

's practice squad on December 1, 2020. On January 11, 2021, Leonard signed a reserve/futures contract with Washington. He was waived/injured on August 24, 2021, and reverted to injured reserve before being waived with an injury settlement on September 2.

Atlanta Falcons

On November 18, 2021, Leonard was signed to the Atlanta Falcons practice squad. He was released on December 7.

Minnesota Vikings

On December 28, 2021, Leonard was signed to the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansio ...

practice squad.

Atlanta Falcons (second stint)

On December 31, 2021, Leonard was signed by the Atlanta Falcons off the Vikings practice squad. his first career game against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...

on January 2, 2022. He was waived August 26, 2022 He was released on August 26, 2022.

References

External links

Florida State Seminoles bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leonard, Rick 1996 births Living people American football offensive tackles Arizona Cardinals players Atlanta Falcons players Florida State Seminoles football players Houston Texans players Los Angeles Rams players Minnesota Vikings players New Orleans Saints players People from Middletown, Maryland Players of American football from Maryland Sportspeople from the Washington metropolitan area Washington Football Team players