It is never too early for a mock draft and Fansided has put together a good one after Week 7 of the NFL season. Despite a 3-4 record, the Colts are currently in the playoffs by way of leading the division and that means a draft pick in the 20s.
Fansided has the Colts taking USC center Max Tuerk with the 26th pick in the 2016 draft.
Here’s what they had to say about the Colts and Tuerk:
"That the No. 1 ranked center in the 2016 draft class fell all the way to No. 26 is probably the best thing to happen to the Indianapolis Colts all season. Before the season commenced Indianapolis was a trendy pick to make Super Bowl 50. As games played out, they were exposed to have a myriad of flaws: weak offensive line, poor defense, aged skill players – take your pick.It’s only taken how many years for the Colts to finally address their offensive line woes? Finally realizing that Andrew Luck is fallible (he still turns the ball over way too much) and not indestructible (he missed the first games of his career in 2015) Indianapolis decides to give him some help.Turek does come as a bit of a liability, given that a knee injury knocked him out of his senior season at USC. Regardless, he’ll be ready to go by the NFL Combine and will prove a boon to a depleted Colts line.One of the biggest benefits Turek presents is his ability to play numerous positions on the line. As a true freshman, he started at left tackle before moving to center later in his career. The Colts need help across the offensive line, and versatile player like Turek marks an excellent player for whom to rebuild the unit around."
The Colts desperately need to find a long term option at center, as every player aside from A.Q. Shipley has been awful (also, why they hell didn’t they just play Shipley?).
More from Horseshoe Heroes
- Colts explored hiring former quarterback and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky
- When is the NFL Combine 2023? NFL Combine schedule, events, how to stream
- Latest NFL mock draft has Colts trading up to No. 1 for star QB
- Eagles offensive free agents that could follow Shane Steichen to Colts
- Here’s why Colts linebacker Shaq Leonard is going to love Shane Steichen
The importance of
Jeff Saturdayto the Colts offense of the 2000s cannot be understated and they need someone to pair with Andrew Luck and give him some consistency at the position. Saturday was phenomenal at diagnosing the blitz and making adjustments.
Personally, I am still disappointed with the Phillip Dorsett pick last season. Not that he isn’t a good player, but they had more glaring needs on the defense. I would have gone with UCLA linebacker Eric Kendricks, who is steadily improving with the Vikings and is great as a pass rusher (four sacks already).
The Colts have a ton of needs and with an aging roster are going to have to start looking for replacements for some of these stars. Defensively, the Colts need a pass rusher, safeties, middle linebackers, and possibly another cornerback (depending on how D’Joun Smith looks when he returns). They also need to build a team more geared towards stopping the pass (which means more athletic linebackers who are good in coverage).
The team’s entire philosophy might (and probably will) change following the season when team owner Jim Irsay cleans house. It is a forgone conclusion that coach Chuck Pagano is a goner, but will GM Ryan Grigson leave with him is the question. Frankly, firing just Pagano doesn’t solve anything and both need to go.
Addressing the offensive line in the next draft is a good start and the Colts need more help along the interior as opposed to on the edges.