10 Takeaways From Colts 2024 Draft

1. Goals Into Action

Prior to the Colts 2024 Draft, I laid out these goals:

1. Future Pro Bowl defender at premium position (DE/CB)

1A. Pass catching weapon growing into Anthony Richardson’s 2nd contract

3. A future OL starter from a mid-round pick

4. Quality depth found at RB, LB

Well, I’d say the Colts followed pretty darn close to that in pulling those picks off the board.

-Is Laiatu Latu that Pro Bowl defender?

-Will Adonai Mitchell reach that oozing potential alongside fellow 21-year-old Anthony Richardson?

-Does Matt Goncalves and/or Tanor Bortolini eventually find starting jobs up front?

-How about some a depth answer in Jaylin Carlies at linebacker?

Obviously, development is needed and not everything will unfold how it looks on paper, but the 2024 draft approach does follow a pretty darn similar script that should have been desired.

2. Likes His Defensive Backs

Those words Chris Ballard spoke about his secondary before the draft indeed turned into action with the premium picks of this year’s draft. Ballard likes his young secondary growing into another year and did not feel the urge to spend a top 4-round pick on a cornerback or safety. It took until the team’s 7th selection in this year’s draft (Auburn’s Jaylin Simpson) to take a defensive back. Although it appears a few coveted DBs went just before the Colts in Rounds 2 and 3. “Sometimes the draft – it just goes the way it goes,” Ballard said after Day 2 of the draft. “You try to make something and get some things done. Sometimes you do and sometimes you don’t. We don’t have control of other teams.” Honestly, the entire room (at both cornerback and safety) probably needs more veteran attention, than another young body. So we’ll see if the Colts follow up post-draft and add to it. “Between now and the start of the season – there are still some good players out there,” Ballard said after the final day of the draft. “There’s some veterans out there that can still play. We’ll dig and investigate all of them and then make a decision if we think they are the right fit for us as we go along…Like I always tell you all, there’s no perfect team – there’s not. Everybody has got something that, man, I wish I could get a little bit better. You go to work, and you take your time and you don’t press and you make sure that by the time the season starts, when you get into the season, you can plug those positions. But yeah, I’m pleased about where we’re at right now.” No Colts position group is less battle tested entering the 2024 season than the defensive backfield. But the GM strayed away from spending another notable pick there.

3. Necessary Support Attempt For Anthony Richardson  

For the next handful of drafts, this topic must be annually addressed significantly. Just look at the variety of major hits the Colts found in the immediate drafts following Peyton Manning’s selection in 1998, compared to those following Andrew Luck in 2012. It’s a massive reason, among other things, those eras were stark in their sustaining of success. In 2024, the Colts spent a pair of premium picks on a weapon (Adonai Mitchell in Round 2) for Anthony Richardson and a protector (Matt Goncalves in Round 3). And then followed that up on Day 3 with another OL pick (Tanor Bortolini-center of the future?. This approach—premium picks on positions that directly support your young QB—needs to be commonplace in order to make sure Richardson has what he needs around him.

4. Coach Reggie Wayne Needed

In drafting Adonai Mitchell from Texas in Round 2, the Colts are getting one of the more impressive wide receiver testing athletes in the entire draft. But the 21-year-old wideout didn’t have an immense amount of college football production, with only 3 games of more than 80 yards in his 35-game career. Although he did catch an eye-popping 5 touchdowns in 5 separate playoff games, clearly showing a knack for rising to the occasion. Reggie Wayne and Shane Steichen attended the Texas Pro Day, so they had some interaction with Mitchell there. The Colts are going to need to rely on Wayne for some guidance in getting Mitchell to become more consistent and reach the potential many think is there based off those testing traits. This is a pick that screams high ceiling, and the Colts are banking on internal development to help Anthony Richardson get a deep ball threat to go with (Richardson and Mitchell are both 21 years old, with the QB 3.5 months older than his newest WR).

5. Have You Found A Closer?

Labeling Laiatu Latu as the new Colts closer is quite the big-time label to put on a rookie. But Latu’s college production gives you reason to throw that out there. And the franchise could really use such a player to emerge off the edge, with the ability to line up on either edge. Since Robert Mathis led the league in sacks in 2013, the Colts have only had two double-digit sack seasons from an individual player (Erik Walden: 11.0 in 2016; Justin Houston: 11.0 in 2019. More than a double-digit sack season though, the Colts just desperately need to find more consistent pressure off the edge, especially in those timely late-game moments. Far too often in the last couple of years, they’ve been unable to close leads out, especially at home, with the lack of those major pass rushing moments contributing to it.

6. Center Of The Future?

Hey, we got one right from our mock draft! Wisconsin center Tanor Bortolini screamed a Colts pick and that came to fruition with a correct mock draft of him going in Round 4 to Indianapolis. The uber athletic Bortolini could very well get that starting center torch from Ryan Kelly, with the veteran center entering a contract year at the age of 31. It goes without saying what a steady presence at center did for Peyton Manning. Andrew Luck never sniffed that, until Kelly was drafted in 2016. This goal—trying to find a center of the future—was something I had on the pre-draft list. We will see if Bortolini lives up to that.

7. Rule Change Pick?

Yes, I would make a strong argument, without the NFL changing the rules on kickoffs this season (which should lead to more returns this fall) a Round 5 selection of Oregon State’s Anthony Gould doesn’t happen. Gould had an eye-popping 16.3 yards per punt return in his college career, but only returned just 1 kick (assuming that will be more of his role in the NFL). With the NFL’s new kick return looking more like a punt though, the skillset of a punt returner should translate well there. In 2023, the Colts used Isaiah McKenzie and Josh Downs on punt return, and Dallis Flowers joined those two at kick returns. McKenzie is no longer on the roster, Flowers is coming off a torn Achilles and Downs is a key offensive piece, so Gould might very well slide into both of those duties. It goes without saying what an injection of special teams life can do for a team. The Colts hope Gould is that in Indy.

8. Defensive Line Strength

In the aftermath of picking Laiatu Latu at 15 overall, Chris Ballard was gushing about how he feels about his defensive line. On multiple occasions, Ballard offered some serious praise for what they had built, and were now adding, to their front. “I think our stable up front, it’s good. We’re really good up front,” Ballard said following the pick of Latu. “They got versatility and when you have that, you have a chance to really have some really good green rush units, which we think we do,” the GM later added. If Ballard is right on this, that is obviously huge for a group that has received heavy investment, but has yet to reach that truly top-flight, dominant unit. And it means even more to help try cover up some inevitable inconsistency at the back end of the defense with such an inexperienced secondary.

9. Coveted Offensive Lineman Fits Where?

It’s quite possible this 2024 season ends up being mostly a redshirt year for third-round rookie Matt Goncalves, with the Colts returning all 5 starting offensive linemen. But don’t let that fool the Colts love for Goncalves. Day 2 trade ups by Chris Ballard are rare, so they certainly love Goncalves, even though his exact position fit at the next level remains up in the air. Ballard thinks he could play just about anywhere on the line, after starting 24 games all at tackle (13 at right tackle, 11 at left tackle). Goncalves only played 3 games as a senior, so it is interesting to see this much love. If you want to compare Goncalves to Bernhard Raimann, they were only picked 2 spots apart (Raimann went 77^th overall in 2021, with Goncalves going 79^th overall this year). Where Goncalves will line up though remains a mystery.

10. Tight End Belief

When the draft rolls around you inevitably get some action to clear up murky words throughout the offseason. Tight end was a confusing position to peg down for the Colts. Although some reported Brock Bowers interest was there from Shane Steichen, the Colts ended up not trading up for him, and didn’t take a single tight end in this year’s draft. That’s not the most shocking thing after they had taken 4 tight ends between Rounds 3-6 the last three years, and that doesn’t include Mo Alie-Cox. This group is looking for someone to emerge though, but it’s going to have to come from a returning player.