It's no secret, as draft season arrives, that the Indianapolis Colts will be without a first-round pick. In fact, they won't have one at their disposal either this year or next year to build up the team, thanks to the ill-fated Sauce Gardner blockbuster at this year's trade deadline.
The hallmark of a good team in today's NFL is that they hit on their draft picks, and because the Colts have so few premium selections, it makes hitting on those picks even more important. If Chris Ballard wants to continue steering this team for years to come, he needs to capitalize on the places where it matters most, and draft picks definitely qualify as just that.
Fans typically always want the flashy player, the shiny new wide receiver, running back, or quarterback, but the truth is that the NFL is a sport won in the trenches.
The peak of the Colts' success came when their offensive line was the most dominant unit in the NFL, and with Braden Smith having an uncertain future as an unrestricted free agent, Indy could turn to the draft to find an infusion of youth.
Austin Siereveld could be the answer to finally solving the Colts offensive line problem for good
It's mock draft season, and Lou Scataglia of NFL Spin Zone has crafted a two-round mock draft that sees the Colts bringing in Siereveld with the 49th pick of the draft. Still, this should be taken with a grain of salt, as the NFL postseason is still ongoing and there are many hurdles to clear before draft season.
Without knowing how the Colts free agency period will pan out, we won't truly know how dire the Colts need at offensive line will be when it becomes their time to be on the clock. However, it may turn out not to matter all that much. Indy has a lot of holes on the roster, it's true, and ideally, those holes would be filled.
However, if the Colts are on the clock to pick at number 49 overall and the board has fallen so that Siereveld is the best player remaining, Indianapolis should make the selection they feel strongest in, regardless of positional needs. After all, the most important quality of a draft pick is that they turn out to be a good player.
It will benefit the team most in the long run to pick a good player regardless of how needy their position group is. Compare that scenario to taking a bad player just because he fits a different position, and it's really no contest what choice should be made.
Ballard and company cannot afford to swing and miss when their draft capital is as hamstrung as it is now. If the board falls so that there aren't any other clear options, and they feel confident that Siereveld could be a quality, longtime NFL contributor, they should run the selection in as fast as they can.