The Colts have had a history of success in the NFL Draft and they’ll look to continue that this year. Let’s take a look back at the best draft picks in franchise history.
The Colts have been a model franchise since their move to Indianapolis in the ’80’s, and building through the draft has been the main reason for their success.
Almost all of the cornerstone players of the franchise were drafted by the Colts, which shows how great the front offices and coaching staffs have been over the past 30-plus years. Here are the eight best draft picks in Colts history.
Tight End Dallas Clark
The Colts took Dallas Clark with the 24th overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft.
Coming out of Iowa, Clark was a fantastic receiving tight end that ended up being a perfect fit alongside receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne.
Clark ended his career with 5,665 receiving yards and 53 touchdowns with most of those numbers coming in an Indianapolis uniform.
Running Back Edgerrin James
Edgerrin James came from a line of great running backs at Miami, and he was a no-brainer pick at number four overall in the 1999 NFL Draft.
Peyton Manning had been drafted the year before, and the Colts were able to put a four-time Pro Bowl running back behind him in the backfield.
Related Story: Former Colt Edgerrin James Named as Hall of Fame Finalist
James ran for 12,246 yards and scored 91 touchdowns during his 11-year career spending seven seasons with the team who drafted him.
Quarterback Andrew Luck
Andrew Luck would’ve been much higher on this list before injuries slowed him down, but he was still a great pick at number one overall in 2012.
The Colts had one of the smoothest transitions at quarterback in NFL history by moving on from the Peyton Manning era into the Andrew Luck era.
Hopefully Luck will come back healthy in 2018 and continue to climb his way up this list.
Defensive End Dwight Freeney
The Colts took Dwight Freeney out of Syracuse with the 11th overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft, and he developed into one of the greatest pass rushers of all-time.
Freeney has racked up 125.5 career sacks, with over 100 of those coming with the Colts.
He may not be done yet as he’s showed his spin move is still effective at 38 years old.
Wide Receiver Marvin Harrison
Marvin Harrison and Peyton Manning formed one of the best quarterback-wide receiver duos in NFL history after the Colts selected Harrison with the 19th overall pick out of Syracuse in 1996.
Harrison was a fairly productive receiver before Manning showed up in Indianapolis, but his numbers skyrocketed with his new quarterback.
Picking a Hall of Famer with the 19th overall pick ended up being a pretty good move for the Colts.
Wide Receiver Reggie Wayne
Reggie Wayne was taken with the second-to-last pick in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft and went on to become a legend in Indianapolis.
Wayne played all 14 years of his NFL career with the Colts racking up 14,345 receiving yards and 82 touchdowns.
The draft picks of the late-1990’s and early-2000’s built a juggernaut in Indianapolis, and Wayne was an integral part of the franchise’s success.
Defensive End Robert Mathis
The Colts got an absolute steal in the 2003 NFL Draft as Robert Mathis slipped all the way down to the fifth round and Indianapolis scooped him up with the 138th overall pick.
If the Colts knew Mathis was going to make five Pro Bowls and sack the quarterback 123 times in his career, they probably would’ve taken him sooner.
Indianapolis got 14 years of Hall of Fame level football from a player that most teams never even considered drafting.
Quarterback Peyton Manning
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There were a lot of people who thought Ryan Leaf would be a better NFL quarterback than Peyton Manning, but luckily the Colts didn’t listen to them and took Peyton first overall in the 1998 draft.
Manning brought home Indianapolis’ lone Super Bowl trophy and threw for 54,828 yards and 399 touchdowns during his 13 seasons in a Colts uniform.
Drafting Peyton Manning in ’98 led to over a decade of dominance in Indianapolis.