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Colts Spent ‘Significant Time’ with Arkansas St. TE Darion Griswold at Pro Day

By Luke Schultheis

Jan 27, 2016; Mobile, AL, USA; South squad tight end Darion Griswold of Arkansas State (84) cannot make a catch against South squad safety DeAndre Houston-Carson of William & Mary (36) during Senior Bowl practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Andrews-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 27, 2016; Mobile, AL, USA; South squad tight end Darion Griswold of Arkansas State (84) cannot make a catch against South squad safety DeAndre Houston-Carson of William & Mary (36) during Senior Bowl practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Andrews-USA TODAY Sports /
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According to DraftInsider.net’s Tony Pauline, the Indianapolis Colts spent ‘significant time‘ with Arkansas State tight end Darion Griswold at his pro day on Tuesday.

The 6’5″, 255 pound doesn’t have overwhelming receiving production with the Red Wolves, as he finished his senior season with just 13 receptions for 187 receiving yards and 2 receiving touchdowns–earning Honorable Mention All-Conference honors.

However, much like tight end Dwayne Allen was like last season for the Colts, he was also highly underutilized in his offense’s passing attack.

Jan 28, 2016; Mobile, AL, USA; South squad safety Kevin Byard of Middle Tennessee (left) battles tight end Darion Griswold of Arkansas State (right) in a pass receiving drill during Senior Bowl practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Andrews-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 28, 2016; Mobile, AL, USA; South squad safety Kevin Byard of Middle Tennessee (left) battles tight end Darion Griswold of Arkansas State (right) in a pass receiving drill during Senior Bowl practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Andrews-USA TODAY Sports /

It’s not Griswold’s production that intrigues scouts. Rather, it’s his size at 6’5″ and athletic ability–as he was also highly recruited as a former all-conference and all-state basketball player from Arkansas before settling on football.

The NFL has seen gifted tight ends who were former basketball standouts such as Tony Gonzalez, Antonio Gates, and Jimmy Graham. Not to mention, the Colts have had their own success with former Colts tight end Marcus Pollard and have just recently tried their hand with practice squad tight end Erik Swoope, who’s vying for a roster spot this offseason.

Griswold does sound pretty athletic and has the size to make him an interesting red zone target, which is something that the Colts recently lost when 6’6″ tight end Coby Fleener left for the New Orleans Saints in free agency on a lucrative contract.

At the very least, he sounds like an interesting developmental tight end (via his NFL.com Draft Profile):

"STRENGTHSBig body with some thickness in his lower half. Good straight-line movement for a big man and was used to challenge downfield. All-­state high school basketball player with ability to body up and catch the ball in traffic. Decent leaper. Dependable hands and tucks ball quickly to get up the field after catch. Technique as run blocker needs lots of work, but flashes some potential in that area if he can become more balanced at point of attack."

"WEAKNESSESTakes awhile to come out of his stance and get into his routes. Labored gait when running. No separation quickness out of his breaks. Needs to play with more consistent play speed. Not a true in­line tight end and lacked production expected from a move tight end. Waist-­bending head-ducker as a run blocker and very raw. Will need to improve strength in his hands to latch onto his blocking targets.BOTTOM LINEIntriguing tight end prospect who lacks eye­-catching production, but who has the size and basketball background that will get the attention of teams looking for a project to work with."

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