In a best-case scenario, the Indianapolis Colts will come away from the 2026 NFL Draft with a haul of future Hall of Famers, All-Pros, and Super Bowl champions.
Not possible, you say? Unlikely, sure. But theoretically possible.
Ben Solak’s article at ESPN.com last summer identified the best-ever draft picks over the years from selection No. 1 through selection No. 262. If the Colts somehow matched the best-ever pick with each of their seven selections in the upcoming draft, they’d be the envy of the NFL.
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Here’s a look at the types of selections optimistic Colts fans can dream of in the upcoming draft, based on Solak’s rankings. For the more pessimistic, we also included a “reality check” of the best players the Colts have actually managed to identify at those same spots.
#47 pick
Dream selection: Bobby Wagner, LB. Wagner, the No. 47 pick in 2012, was a six-time first-team All-Pro for the great Seattle Seahawks defenses of the 2010s. He was still a full-time starter this past season for the Washington Commanders.
Reality check: Jerry Logan, a fourth-round pick in 1963, is the best of the five selections the Colts have made at the No. 47 pick. Logan was a three-time Pro Bowl honoree and started at defensive back for the franchise’s Super Bowl V champions.
#78 pick
Dream selection: Joe Thuney, OL. Thuney, the No. 78 pick in the 2016 draft, earned four Super Bowl rings as a starting lineman for the New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs before moving on to the Chicago Bears this past season.
Reality check: The Colts franchise has selected three times from the #78 spot. None of the three selections played a down in the NFL. On a brighter note, Indianapolis has identified contributors in neighboring draft positions in recent years – offensive lineman Bernhard Raimann (77th in 2022) and receiver Josh Downs (79th in 2023).
#113 pick
Dream selection: Kevin Greene, LB. Greene, the 113th pick in the 1985 draft, is third on the official all-time sacks list with 160 and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Reality check: The Colts have picked three times from the No. 113 spot. Offensive lineman Sid Abramowitz, in 1983, had the longest career of the three. He played four NFL seasons, the first and last of them with the Colts.
#156 pick
Dream selection: Ed Newman, OL. Newman, the No. 156 pick in the 1973 draft, managed to earn a roster spot on a Miami Dolphins team that had gone 17-0 the previous season. He eventually earned four Pro Bowl appearances in the late stages of his career.
Reality check: The Colts have picked three times from the No. 156 spot. The most successful of the three was Carl Powell, a defensive end selected in 1997. Powell played 11 games as a rookie in Indianapolis, was out of the NFL for two seasons, and then played six more seasons with four teams in the early 2000s.
#214 pick
Dream selection: Ken Houston, DB. Houston, a ninth-round pick (214th overall) in 1967, made the Pro Football Hall of Fame after 14 superb seasons with the Houston Oilers and Washington.
Reality check: The only time the Colts were associated with the No. 214 pick was in 2012, when defensive end Tim Fugger was part of a series of trades that resulted in Drew Stanton coming to Indianapolis to serve as Andrew Luck’s backup during Luck’s rookie season.
#249 pick
Dream selection: Dwight Clark, WR. Clark, the first pick of the 10th round in 1979, became one of Joe Montana’s favorite targets and was a starter on the first of San Francisco’s Super Bowl champion teams in the 1980s.
Reality check: The Colts have never drafted from the No. 249 spot. Indianapolis identified offensive lineman Will Fries with the No. 248 pick in 2021
#254 pick
Dream selection: Elijah Alexander, LB. Tampa Bay spotted Alexander with the No. 254 pick in 1992. Alexander eventually spent three of his nine NFL seasons in Indianapolis.
Reality check: The Colts have owned the No. 254 pick twice. One of them was tight end Justice Cunningham in 2013, who caught one pass in his one season in Indianapolis.