Second-round picks can't be maybe-or-not picks. When the Indianapolis Colts choose someone in round two, they need to produce, and hopefully, quite quickly. The issue recently is that general manager Chris Ballard has whiffed on some second-rounders.
The problem includes wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, a 2024 second-round choice whom the team gave up on quickly, and included him in the trade last season that brought cornerback Sauce Gardner to Indy. That might also include edge rusher Jaylahn Tuimoloau, who produced nearly nothing in his rookie year last season.
That doesn't mean Tuimoloau is happy with being what some perceive on social media as a second-round bust. One season in the NFL does not a career make, and Tuimoloau could certainly bounce back from his first-year struggles and be a good player in year two, and a great one by year three.
Jaylahn Tuimoloau prepares to explode in his second season with the Indianapolis Colts
That was the expectation when Ballard, who, admittedly, has whiffed on even more edge rushers than he has on quarterbacks, took the Ohio State product so high in last season's draft. Tuimoloau needed to play quickly. Yet, he seemed not quick or strong enough to make an impact in the league, at least not immediately.
This offseason, Tuimoloau has decided that a different approach was needed. He didn't lose much weight, but he proportioned it differently over his frame. He gained muscle mass and lost some of the fat he might have had. The hope is that the transition makes him faster.
Instead of trying to overpower offensive linemen who are likely already stronger than he was as a rookie, he might try to push the lineman trying to block him back a bit and then go around him with speed.
According to 107.5 The Fan's Kevin Bowen, Tuimoloau said, "My goal was to just be as lean as possible and become more twitchy and a lot faster. This is my first offseason having to not worry about (the) Combine or Pro Day. So, I actually got the time to sit back and really process what I wanted to get done. And it was just leaning, one, to become bigger, stronger, faster in every area possible."
Of course, "bigger, stronger, faster" is a cliche, and cannot be proven from the second-year Indianapolis Colts edge rusher's point of view until he plays in real games. He could still be a second-round bust, and to help change that narrative, he needs to be good quite quickly when the new season begins.
Oddly, Jaylahn Tuimoloau's constant smile might work against him. He is likely serious about his football career, but some might see his positivity as something that means he doesn't care about how he plays. The hope is that the Colts edge rusher keeps smiling while also jumping up in production. That would be the perfect situation.
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