Ranking the Colts positional needs before the NFL Draft

The Colts have made many improvements this offseason, however, there are still many positional needs to be filled approaching the NFL Draft.

What started out as a slow offseason for the Indianapolis Colts, ended up being very fruitful. If you look at the number of players the Colts have added this year, you can without a doubt see that the team has gotten better.

Indianapolis still has many positional needs to fill and with free agency almost wrapped up, what positions should Indy focus on the most going into the NFL Draft?

So far in this offseason, Indy has made a number of major improvements. The Colts shipped off Carson Wentz and then traded for his replacement in Matt Ryan and acquired former Pro Bowl defensive end Yannick Ngakoue from the Raiders.

They also signed former DPOY Stephon Gilmore. To go along with these acquisitions they signed safety Rodney McLeod and a few more players for depth.

It’s almost safe to say that the Colts are done making any major moves as far as free agency is concerned. With that being said the team will definitely have new starters coming from this year’s NFL Draft.

Since Chris Ballard has taken over as general manager for Indianapolis, he has looked to build the team through the draft. In fact, if you look at the Colts’ current depth chart, thirteen of the Colts’ current starters were drafted since Chris Ballard took over.

The NFL Draft is less than a week away and the Colts own a total of seven picks. In this article, I am going to give the Colts’ top-three positional needs going into the NFL Draft as well as who they should pick for each position.

3. Tight end is a priority for Colts

The Colts lost longtime starter Jack Doyle to retirement, leaving them with a very lackluster tight end room.

Jack Doyle retiring left the Colts in a precarious spot. They now only have two formidable tight ends on the roster. Mo Alie-Cox, who started seven games last year and totaled 316 yards and four touchdowns, and Kylen Granson, who was picked by Indy in the fourth round of last year’s draft. He only had 106 yards last year.

It’s safe to say, in any scenario, Indy will field a very inexperienced player at tight end. Although I believe Mo Alie-Cox will be the day one starter, Indianapolis shouldn’t go into the season relying entirely on his production.

The Colts should look to the NFL Draft to add some depth and possibly find their future at tight end.

Overall, this is a good draft class for tight ends. If Indy wanted to pick someone in the second round, they could get a guy like Trey McBride out of Colorado State or Jeremy Ruckert out of Ohio State. However, I think the Colts will most likely look to fill this need in the third or fourth round.

The best possible option at tight end for the Colts in the third round would be Greg Dulcich out of UCLA. In his Junior season, Dulcich amassed 725 yards and five touchdowns.

He stands in at 6-foot-4, 245 pounds. At that size, he would be a huge key in the run game as well as a huge target for Matt Ryan.

Greg Dulcich is an interesting prospect going into the NFL Draft and there is the possibility that he wouldn’t be available by the time Indy picks in the third round. If he is available, Indy should pick him up. If he ends up getting taken earlier, Indianapolis could look to grab Jake Ferguson out of Wisconsin in the third or fourth round.

2. Colts still must address left tackle

The Colts struggled at LT for most of 2021, could they find their future at LT in this year’s NFL Draft?

Anthony Castonzo was Indy’s starting left tackle for ten years. With his retirement in 2021, the Colts had to look for someone quickly. They signed former number one overall pick Eric Fisher going into the season.

Fisher had his struggles with injuries as well as on the field performance throughout 2021. As of right now, Matt Pryor would be the Colts’ starter at left tackle.

Matt Pryor had five starts for Indianapolis last year and excelled at times at left tackle. He could be a reliable option at left tackle, but Indianapolis shouldn’t rely solely on a guy who has mostly held a backup role throughout his career.

The Colts should look to add depth at left tackle in this year’s draft. There are many good options in the third round that they could look to get.

In my opinion, the best option for Indy would be Daniel Faalele. As far as size goes, Faalele is elite. He stands at 6-foot-8 and weighs 380 pounds. He’s largely still a developmental prospect, but in the third round, it would be hard to pass on his potential.

Daniel Faalele would not be a Week 1 starter for Indy, but with some refinement, he could be the future at left tackle. He still needs to improve on his pass protection as he often gets off-balanced due to his size. However, the potential to be an elite left tackle is there and Indy should look to grab him.

1. Wide receiver has to be the top priority for Colts

Wide Receiver has become the top of the positional needs for the Indianapolis Colts.

With the possible departure of TY Hilton looming over the Colts, the wide receiver room looks very bleak. As of now, Indianapolis only has one consistent threat at wide receiver: Michael Pittman Jr.

In his second season, Pittman became Indy’s number one receiver last year. However, Indy does not have a solid number two.

Currently, Parris Campbell would be the second wide receiver for the Colts. In three seasons with Indianapolis, Parris has only started eight games.

He has struggled with injury since the start of his career and it’s hard to imagine him providing any consistency for the team next year.

The third wide receiver for the Colts would be Ashton Dulin. Over his three-year career, Dulin has totaled less than 300 yards receiving and only two touchdowns. Indianapolis should be looking to fix this position in the NFL Draft.

The Colts should be looking to draft a wide receiver with their second-round pick. In my opinion, Indy should draft at least take two wide receivers in this draft.

My top pick for Indianapolis in the second round would be Christian Watson. He has elite size and speed and should be able to make a difference at the next level.

Christian Watson would be a legit WR2 playing next to Pittman. I believe the Colts should look to add more depth at wide receiver later in the NFL Draft on day two or three.

Possible picks would be Justyn Ross out of Clemson or David Bell out of Purdue. Indianapolis desperately needs to add depth to a position that is just that bad right now.

Ranking the last 5 players selected No. 42 overall, the spot where Colts will draft

The first selection for the Indianapolis Colts in the 2022 NFL Draft will be No. 42 overall. What kind of player can Indy get at that spot?