Darius Leonard - Turnover King! (YouTube Film Room)

[Colts And Orioles]

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(vs. RAIDERS, 1/02)


In one play, Darius Leonard may have saved the Colts 10 points.

Very late in the 2nd half, the Raiders had the ball deep in Colts territory. On 2nd down and 5, Marcus Mariota appeared to have the 1st down ...... but the referees marked him half a yard short because Leonard punched the ball out of Mariota's arms before he reached the sticks, and the ball went out of bounds without the Raiders getting the 1st down. The Raiders wound up settling for a field goal after a false start penalty cost them 5 yards, and Mariota was the n sacked on 3rd down.

In addition to making the Raiders settle for a field goal instead of a touchdown, Leonard may have saved an additional 7 points for the Colts because if the Raiders had gotten that 1st down, they not only might have scored a touchdown, but they also might have taken most of the time off of the clock ...... thereby making it nearly impossible for the Colts to have tacked on the touchdown that they did right before halftime.


So in one single play, Leonard's forced fumble very well may have been the difference between a 17-3 Raider lead at halftime and a 13-10 lead at halftime.

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