Much has been made of the poor quality of general manager Chris Ballard's picks for the Indianapolis Colts in recent years, but few can criticize him for picking Laiatu Latu. Widely considered a candidate for defensive rookie of the year, Latu was considered one of the best edge rushers in the 2024 draft class - and for the Colts, he delivered.
Latu finished the season with 32 tackles, 38 pressures, nine quarterback hits, four sacks, five tackles for loss, three forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. And given that Latu was having to play under Gus Bradley and with a struggling defense, it's a miracle he played as well as he did.
.@Colts @laiatu_latu is coming on strong. His moves to beat O-Lineman is a full arsenal. Living on the edge. Looking for a strong stretch run #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/7DG1tYnkVQ
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) December 5, 2024
So it's not much of a surprise that he was named to the Pro Football Writers of America (PWFA) All-Rookie Team -- the only member of the Indianapolis team to receive that honor.
As the Colts have previously pointed out, Latu has an enormous desire to succeed, and is willing to put in whatever work is necessary to become the superstar he has the potential to be. "That's a lot of pressure on a young kid coming into the league and trying to find himself," DeForest Buckner said. "But he's been coming along... I told him, the more reps that I got, the slower the game came for me. And it started to slow down, and I was able to see more and really play my game. I feel like he's been really coming along over the past month."
Latu may not have had as exciting a season as PWFA's defensive rookie of the year (the Los Angeles Rams' Jared Verse), and it could be argued that he didn't meet expectations. But it's also undeniably clear that he had a solid, respectable rookie year, and that the best is still ahead for him.