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Colts 7-round 2023 NFL mock draft 1.0: Building an offense

By Justin Bauerle

ATHENS, GA - NOVEMBER 05: Hendon Hooker #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers warms up prior to the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on November 5, 2022 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
ATHENS, GA - NOVEMBER 05: Hendon Hooker #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers warms up prior to the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on November 5, 2022 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) /
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ATHENS, GA – NOVEMBER 05: Hendon Hooker #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers warms up prior to the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on November 5, 2022 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
ATHENS, GA – NOVEMBER 05: Hendon Hooker #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers warms up prior to the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on November 5, 2022 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) /

Tennessee. 103. player. 46. Pick Analysis. QB. HendonHooker. Scouting Report

Colts draft QB Hendon Hooker in the fourth round (103rd overall)

This is the pick that we received in the trade with the Atlanta Falcons earlier in the draft. Having parity in the quarterback position is not necessarily a bad thing in the NFL anymore. There was once a time when if you had an elite quarterback, there was no need to have an elite backup. You just needed someone to carry the clipboard and look good doing it.

With Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck, that was all that was needed. The Colts found out the hard way when Luck started getting injured that this was not necessarily the case. In fact, the Colts started three different quarterbacks in 2022.

In this year’s playoffs, fans didn’t see Lamar Jackson or Tua Tagovailoa with both out dealing with injuries. Without a succession plan for both, the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins were ultimately limited.

Drafting Hooker later in the fourth round provides Indianapolis with the ability to have a backup plan. He’s a little older and dealing with an ACL injury, but he doesn’t need to start this season or maybe even ever. Peyton is a huge fan of the Tennessee quarterback and before his injury late in the season, Hooker was looking to be a Heisman finalist.

Looking around the league, there are starting quarterbacks that were not drafted with the intent to start. Kirk Cousins is the most notable quarterback that is doing a great job for what he has put up with. He was drafted in the fourth round in the same draft Washington took Robert Griffin III. Which one is in the playoffs this year?

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