Shane Steichen’s Colts QB’s celebratory moment makes this offseason quite special! Rookie QB Riley Leonard, who won the national championship with Notre Dame, took the major off-field decision just 2 weeks ahead of the training camp. Leonard, who led the Fighting Irish to the semi-finals of the 2024-25 College Football Playoffs, seems determined for his first NFL season with the Colts. And, his longtime girlfriend Molly Walding is wholeheartedly behind him off the field. Interestingly, Leonard, who is the Colts’ sixth-round pick of the 2025 NFL draft, is ready to manage the “diamond pressure” off-field just before embracing the challenges while leading the offense.
Taking to his official IG handle, Shane Steichen’s rookie, Riley Leonard, dropped the beautiful glimpses of his romantic proposal to his high school sweetheart, Molly Walding. The former Notre Dame quarterback, who snagged 8 TDS with 68.2% of his passing rate during four games at Notre Dame, announced his love to his partner on Wednesday. Along with dropping the adorable snap of them together, he gave a notable caption to his post. “Diamonds make pressure,” he mentioned in his post.
In fact, his facial expressions, where he reflected ‘what to do?‘, perfectly complemented the caption. Meanwhile, his fiancée Molly appeared ecstatic as she showed off her diamond ring in the photo. The couple looked adorable while embracing the most memorable moment at Lake Como, Italy. At this moment, they both opted for a simple look while donning the matching white color comfy outfits.
Not only did Leonard express his exhilaration for starting his ‘forever’ chapter with Molly, a public relations student at Auburn University, but she equally gushed over him with pride and love at this moment. “Best day of my life!!!!! I love you!!!” she said. In fact, she dropped another sweet picture of them. “I love you, Riley Leonard!!!!! If you told me at age 13, I wouldn’t believe you! The greatest day of my life!!!!,” she mentioned in her IG post caption. It indeed showcased the couple’s strong bond and chemistry. It is really a wholesome moment for the couple who grew up in the same hometown in Fairhope, Alabama, and have been on each other’s side since 2017.
Impressively, the couple is often seen sharing sweet moments and paying heartfelt birthday and anniversary tributes to each other since they began dating about 8 years ago. It reflects their growing love and affection for each other. Last year, in 2024, Molly, who is the social media manager for a Christian ministry, penned the emotional message on her Instagram. She celebrated 7 years of their togetherness. “Celebrating an Irish win and celebrating 7 years of us!!!!!!” she wrote in the caption.
“I couldn’t be more thankful for you @riley.jleonard,” she wrote. This post included a short video clip featuring their moment from their high school time and during college football games. Back in 2022, Molly Walding, who has served as the recruitment chair for her sorority, Chi Omega, shared an adorable TikTok video. It featured their throwback picture when they were just 14 years old, reflecting the years and the moments they had spent together.
In addition, throughout their long-distance relationships, Shane Steichen’s player and Walding kept supporting one another. Despite attending different schools, Leonard was at Notre Dame in Indiana, and Walding at Auburn University in Alabama, they managed to see each other even with their busy schedules. And, now, fast forward to this moment, all those efforts and respect for each other led them to take their relationship to the next level.
Interestingly, the Colts QB’s life-changing decision came just as coach Shane Steichen addressed the team’s top five training camp battles.
Riley Leonard’s coach, Shane Steichen, needs to handle 5 battles at training camp
With training camp just two weeks away from kicking off on July 22, there are plenty of key position battles that will have a significant effect on the team’s 2025 season. Colts head coach Shane Steichen, who is entering his third season with the team with a 17-17 record, needs to handle the top five position Colts training camp battles. Colts’ starting QB position considerations between Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones will be the most challenging decision for Steichen. Since the Colts signed Jones with a one-year, $14 million contract this offseason, the team has severe concerns about Richardson’s viability as a long-term investment.
Clearly, after Andrew Luck’s abrupt retirement in 2019, the team has had difficulty finding a replacement for the quarterback position. Richardson’s absence in mandatory minicamp due to his shoulder injury also left many buzzing that he will start this race further behind when training camp starts. Well, time will tell who will win the Q1 position job during the training camp. This results in another headache as the QB2 position is also hanging by a thread.
Besides the Colts’ quarterback conflicts, there is another upcoming offensive battle at the center position. Young player Tanor Bortolini will face Danny Pinter, an experienced player in the offensive camp matchup. Many fans thought Bortolini would be given this position. But at minicamp, the Colts used a lot of rotation at the position. Although Pinter is receiving more attention inside, Bortolini is still the front-runner to start at center for the Colts this season.
Besides these conflicts, Shane Steichen will also have to make important decisions on starting linebacker positions. As the Colts have not signed a linebacker with NFL starting experience in free agency, it appears that Jaylon Carlies, who is entering his second NFL season, will be the front-runner going into training camp. Interestingly, Segun Olubi will be his lone serious competitor until the team decides to try to transition Hunter Wohler. Their 2025 seventh-round pick, from safety to linebacker.
On the other hand, Alec Pierce and Adonai Mitchell are going to compete to be the team’s second starting outside wide receiver. Both will see significant snaps, and ultimately, Shane Steichen needs to make the important decision on their roles as well.
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