5 biggest success stories for the Indianapolis Colts in 2023

2. A great draft class

The most consistent way to build a winner is drafting well every year. This does not mean just acquiring a bunch of capital and taking the best player available every time, scheme fits matter a ton, and finding diamonds in the rough separates you. Well, the Colts did a bit of both when it came to their 2023 NFL Draft class.

This team had 12 picks in this past draft, and they found a lot of talent within those draft selections. They started off with Richardson, and when he was healthy there was plenty to love about his play. But there were plenty of other great talents selected that made instant impacts in 2023. They picked up JuJu Brents from Kansas State in the second round, and while he had some injuries he played well at that corner spot and showed a ton of promise.

This was a team that also needed receiver help, and getting Josh Downs out of UNC helped solidify this receiving core going forward. The Colts grabbed a solid offensive line piece in Blake Freeland, defensive line depth in Adetomiwa Adebawore, and a solid tight end in Will Mallory. Another great steal was Jaylon Jones who stepped in this secondary as a key contributor out of the second round.

This team had a ton of needs, and they went out and filled those in the draft. Another strong draft may just be what puts this team over the top as a true contender, but we will see how 2024 goes when it comes to that. But based on this past draft, trusting in Chris Ballard seems to be a reliable strategy.