Source: Brian Bahr / Getty
INDIANAPOLIS – To end the 2024 Draft for the Colts, Chris Ballard made sure to make a super traits-y pick at the deepest position on the roster.
With the 234th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Colts took Oklahoma defensive tackle Jonah Laulu in Round Seven.
Here are 3 takeaways on Laulu:
1. All About Traits
The 2023 resume for Jonah Laulu had him playing in all 13 games for Oklahoma, piling up 11 tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss and 1 sack. For a guy like Laiatu Latu that might have been just one day of work this season. The light Laulu resume tells you everything you need to know about the Colts banking on traits with this selection. Laulu put up some extremely impressive athlete testing numbers at the Oklahoma Pro Day, to go along with a notable wingspan at 6-5 and 292 pounds. After spending his first 4 college seasons at Hawaii, Laulu transferred to Oklahoma for his final two seasons. For his career, Laulu started 24 of 66 games, producing 102 tackles (27.5 for loss) and 10.5 sacks.
2. Practice Squad Project
Similar to what we saw late last year with DE-Titus Leo in Round 6 and OT-Jake Witt in Round 7, the expected path for Laulu this season will be on the practice squad. While Laulu isn’t the small school product like those two, his production screams nothing about being a draft pick. It’s all about trying to mold this athletic, genuine ball of clay into something down the road. Laulu is also one of the older draft prospects having spent 6 years in college, so he doesn’t really fall into your typical Round 7 developmental project.
3. Deepest Position Group Stills Gets Love
Entering the draft, this position group was probably the deepest on the roster, one with ample investment. But Chris Ballard has always been a fan of the trench picks, no matter what the depth chart look likes. It’s no surprise to see Ballard draft a defensive tackle even with the proven bodies in DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart re-signed. Any immediate playing time at this position group looks to be extremely difficult to find.
