Assessing the Colts’ Weaknesses after the 2018 NFL Draft
By Andrew Ites
The Colts addressed some of their biggest needs in last weekend’s NFL Draft, but there are still some glaring holes on the roster.
The Colts went 4-12 last year, which means there was plenty of work to do this offseason.
Even with the expectation that Andrew Luck comes back next season, the Colts’ roster needed some major pieces in order to compete in 2018.
After an uninspiring free agency period, this year’s draft was going to be critical in building a strong core of talent moving forward.
The offensive line was a major focus heading into the draft, and general manager Chris Ballard spent two of their top three picks on offensive guards.
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The Colts’ corps of linebackers was incredibly thin, but that should improve after drafting three linebackers last weekend.
In the middle rounds, Chris Ballard added a couple of running backs and two wide receivers to inject some playmakers to an offense that was running low on talent.
However, it looks like Indianapolis’ front office overlooked the cornerback position when addressing their needs in the draft.
The Colts had the worst pass defense in the entire NFL last season, but they did not select a single defensive back in this year’s draft.
After losing Rashaan Melvin in free agency, the Colts’ cornerback depth chart was looking thin and inexperienced. Indianapolis didn’t do much to address that hole on the roster in free agency, and they continued to ignore that position in the draft.
There were plenty of solid cornerbacks in this year’s class, but Ballard decided to pass on all of them in favor of other prospects.
The Colts are going to need some major improvements from their group of cornerbacks over the offseason if they expect to improve their pass defense in 2018.