Leonard Floyd

BIOGRAPHY

Leonard Floyd was born September 8, 1992, in Atlanta, Georgia. He is an Outside linebacker in the NFL.

Floyd attended Dodge County High School in Eastman, Georgia, where he played football and participated in track. In football, he played defensive end and tight end. Floyd committed to play college football at the University of Georgia in April 2011. After high school, he attended Hargrave Military Academy for a year to take classes that met NCAA requirements.

As a true freshman in 2013, Floyd started eight of 13 games. He finished the season with 55 tackles and a team-leading 6.5 sacks. Floyd played in 11 games during his sophomore season, finishing the year with 55 tackles, six sacks, and a fumble recovery. In a game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium, Floyd recovered running back Jalen Hurd's fumble and ran it back 96 yards for a touchdown. As a junior in 2015, he played in 13 games with 72 combined tackles, 4.5 sacks, three passes defended, and a fumble recovery. After his junior year, he announced his intentions to enter the 2016 NFL Draft.

Floyd received an invitation to the NFL combine as a top prospect in the upcoming 2016 NFL Draft. He attended the combine and performed the majority of combine drills before injuring his hamstring while running the 40-yard dash. He opted not to perform the bench press and was unable to perform the three-cone drill and short shuttle due to his injury. Coincidentally, teammate and fellow linebacker Jordan Jenkins also injured his hamstring and was unable to do the short shuttle and three-cone drill.

The Chicago Bears selected Floyd in the first round (ninth overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. The Bears traded the No. 11 overall pick and a fourth round pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in order to move up to No. 9.

On May 1, 2019, the Bears picked up the fifth-year option on Floyd's contract. Floyd was released by the Bears on March 17, 2020. On April 24, 2020, the Los Angeles Rams signed Floyd to a one-year contract. On March 15, 2021, Floyd signed a four-year contract extension with the Rams worth $64 million.

On January 23, 2022, Floyd became the last player in NFL history to sack Tom Brady in the Rams' 30–27 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional Round of the NFC playoffs. Floyd helped the Rams reach Super Bowl LVI where they would defeat the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20. Floyd recorded 5 tackles and 1 sack in the game.