Leonard Floyd officially declares for 2016 NFL Draft
By John Buhler
Leonard Floyd officially announced Thursday morning that he will leave school a year early to enter the 2016 NFL Draft. He had one more year of eligibility.
The Georgia Bulldogs star outside linebacker Leonard Floyd will forgo his final year of eligibility to enter the 2016 NFL Draft. Because Floyd spent a year at Hargrave Military Academy, he could have returned to the gridiron for the Dawgs as a redshirt senior in 2016. He graduated from high school in 2012.
Within 48 hours of hearing the news of the firing of long-time Georgia Bulldogs head coach Mark Richt, Floyd had informally announced his intentions to enter the 2016 NFL Draft, as he believed Richt could have been the only coach to convince him to return in 2016. Floyd was eligible to enter the 2015 NFL Draft as he was three years removed from graduating from high school.
Though Leonard Floyd will not play for new head coach Kirby Smart’s staff, his outside linebackers coach of the last two seasons Kevin Sherrer, who will return to Athens in 2016, spoke highly of Floyd. “Leonard will be missed not only just by the Dawg Nation, but by me, his teammates, and the rest of the ‘Wolfpack’. We grew close over the past couple of years. I know he will be very successful in his pro football career.”
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Floyd finished his UGA career with 17 career sacks, 184 tackles, 28.5 tackles for a loss of yardage, forcing five fumbles, and recovering three of them. Leonard Floyd was as dynamic of a pass rusher the Georgia Bulldogs had during the Mark Richt era (2001-15). He improved every season at the University of Georgia.
Leonard Floyd had obvious NFL talent from the moment he set foot in Athens, but he became a great student of the game in his junior season. Sherrer as part of Jeremy Pruitt’s defensive staff asked a ton out of Floyd in their defensive alignments.
While he naturally is a 3-4 outside linebacker, he played inside linebacker alongside senior Jake Ganus often to allow other great UGA pass rushers like Davin Bellamy, Lorenzo Carter, and Jordan Jenkins to get on the gridiron more. He even played up on the defensive line in some instances and raised some eyebrows thriving in the linebacker/safety hybrid position that is STAR.
Early 2016 NFL Draft projections have Leonard Floyd going anywhere from late in the first round to the middle of the second round. Because he could play several positions at Georgia, it adds to his stock, not just as traditional 3-4 situational pass rusher from outside linebacker.
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I would have loved to have seen him play Between the Hedges one more year, but he’s ready for the NFL. UGA also has two players that can start at outside linebacker in Bellamy and Carter now that Jenkins and Floyd will enter the 2016 NFL Draft. Best of luck, Leonard!