Brian Leonard set for all-purpose duty

[RamWraith]

By Bill Coats
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Friday, May. 16 2008

As if Brian Leonard didn't already have enough to do, now the Rams plan to
deploy him on multiple special-teams units. And Leonard couldn't be happier.

"I like it; one of the big reasons they drafted me was to come in and be
versatile," said Leonard, the team's second-round draft choice last year out of
Rutgers. "I'll be playing a little bit of running back, a little bit of
fullback, special teams. I think I'm best when I'm in different roles at
different times."

The challenge was heightened with the arrival of Al Saunders as offensive
coordinator. Now Leonard is toiling in his third offense in as many years.

"I think it's an awesome offense, but they say it's one of the hardest offenses
to learn, and one of the most complex," said Leonard, 24. "It's a spread
offense, and we've got a lot of different stuff in there. We throw to the backs
a lot, screens, all that kind of stuff. It looks like they're going to get the
ball in the running back's hands a lot this year."

Leonard played in all 16 games during his rookie season, rushing for 303 on 86
carries and picking up 183 yards on 30 receptions. In four starts at running
back for an injured Steven Jackson, Leonard rolled up 222 yards on 58 carries —
including a 102-yard, 18-carry outing vs. Arizona — and had nine catches for 57
yards.

Not bad for a guy with two bum shoulders.

"I felt like I was a freshman in college, strength-wise," Leonard said. "I was
weak, didn't have a great punch, blocking was tough. … I couldn't do any
upper-body" work in the weight room.

All the while, Leonard struggled to adjust to the NFL many miles removed from
his hometown of Gouverneur, in upstate New York, where in high school he rushed
for 5,854 yards and rolled up a state-record 696 points.

"I feel sorry for those rookies coming in now," he said. "It's such a tough
year to get through. You have to come out and perform at your best, and also
live a different kind of life. This year, it feels so much better and I'm so
much more confident."

And much healthier after having cleanup surgery on both joints Jan. 11. "Now
I'm probably the strongest I've ever been," Leonard said. "I've got my upper
body a little bulkier, and my legs are stronger. I've put on some good weight."

The 6-foot-1 Leonard is at 234 pounds, about 10 more than last year. All the
better to withstand the rigors of lead-blocking, his primary duty when he and
Jackson are in the backfield together.

"Brian's handling a lot of things that I don't think we could've put on him a
year ago," coach Scott Linehan said. "He's going to play fullback for us in
certain packages, and he'll be a halfback for us in others. He's got to know
both, and he's got to be good at both."

A busy — and productive — Leonard figures to be a key component if the Rams are
to rebound from their 3-13 dive last year. Turnarounds aren't foreign to him,
though.

At Rutgers, he was on sub-.500 teams his first two seasons. The Scarlet Knights
improved to 7-5 in 2005 and then 11-2 in '06, the best record since an 11-0
campaign in 1976.

"So I've been through it," said Leonard, who started at running back for three
years before switching to fullback as a senior. "We've got to come back strong
this year. That's what we did at Rutgers, and I feel like it's kind of the same
type of thing.

"Because there's a different vibe on this team. I can feel it."

[Rambos]

"I feel sorry for those rookies coming in now," he said. "It's such a tough
year to get through. You have to come out and perform at your best, and also
live a different kind of life. This year, it feels so much better and I'm so
much more confident."

Sometimes it take a year or so for a guy to get rolling. I hope BL takes his game to the next level.

"Because there's a different vibe on this team. I can feel it."

[Mooselini]

Sometimes it take a year or so for a guy to get rolling. I hope BL takes his game to the next level.

Exactly Rambos. I know that Brian Leonard is going to do good this year. He's going to have a huge role in the squad, I think in order for him to prove to us that he was worth that second round pick is by fulfilling this role.

[C-Mob 71]

I'm hoping brian can develop into an H back type of player like Chris Cooley was used by Saunders with the skins. I think it is unrealistic to try and turn Leonard into a crushing lead blocking full back like lorenzo neal. Linehan had a vision of using leornard in unique ways, hopefully saunders can make those dreams reality.

[shower beers]

I'm hoping brian can develop into an H back type of player like Chris Cooley was used by Saunders with the skins. I think it is unrealistic to try and turn Leonard into a crushing lead blocking full back like lorenzo neal. Linehan had a vision of using leornard in unique ways, hopefully saunders can make those dreams reality.

Very true. We need that crushing fullback though, and this man is not it.