Rick Venturi Breaks Down The Colts Nine Draft Picks

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The NFL Draft is done, which means the long wait until training camp has now begun. For the Colts, it was, on paper at least, a productive draft. They addressed positions of need in edge rusher and wide receiver, while adding some depth to their lines and secondary. There was certainly a lot to like, but as always, time will tell. On Tuesday’s edition of The Ride With JMV, former NFL coach and current Colts radio analyst Rick Venturi joined the show and went through most of the Colts 9 draft picks, giving his insight and opinions on the newest members of the Indianapolis Colts. Check out Rick’s thoughts and listen to the full conversation below, and tune into The Ride With JMV weekday’s from 3-6pm on 93.5/107.5 The Fan!

1. (1) 15 – Laiatui Latu – DE, UCLA

“When you look at Latu, he is a terrific player on tape…What I like about Latu is that he is a refined and classy pass rusher. He’s a double-digit guy coming out of college…this kid has the rush ability, he has, I think, good movement. Now, he’s not an elite athlete if you want to pick it clean. There were four edge rushers that went in the first round. Of the four, if you just look at the metrics, he would be fourth. But if you look at the game tape, and you look at the production, he’s clearly number one.”

2. (2) 52 – Adonai Mitchell – WR, Texas

“Mitchell has tremendous speed, he can play on the outside, he’s playmaker, he has great extension, he can reach outside the circle to catch the football, really good on the 50/50 ball, really good in the redzone…We’re just lucky, in my opinion, we are lucky as all get out, and I’m thankful for it, that he slid.”

3. (3) 79 – OT Matt Goncalves – OT, Pitt

“He’s a big, road grating type of guy. Little bit, not quite as good an athlete, reminds me a little bit of Braden Smith coming out. He’s huge, Goncalves, he’s 6’6”, 330lb, and he’s really long. He’s got like 33” plus arms. He can be a road grater, he’s a tough guy, there’s no question about that, he has the mental disposition to play…My question is, is he quick enough? I don’t know, and it’s impossible to judge his athleticism because he’s coming off that toe injury.”

4. (4) 117 – Tanor Bortolini – G, Wisconsin

“He’s heir apparent to [Ryan] Kelly…He’s a really good athlete, sub 5 [second] 40 [yard dash time], he’s got a really good three-cone out in space at center, but he’s just the opposite of Goncalves. He’s a very good athletic center, could play guard, but he has just the opposite problem, he has trouble with the big, big, ponderous nose guard that can get in there and squash him, and he has a little bit of trouble with really harsh A-gap blitzes when he gets forceful in there.”

5. (5) 142 – Anthony Gould – WR, Oregon St.

“He’s got just eye-catching numbers when it comes to both receiving [and returning]…He’s size-wise about like [Isaiah] McKenzie, I think if you wanted to make a comp maybe it’s Tank Dell on the plus side. He’s 4.39 [40-yard dash time], 39 ½” vertical, and he has a 4.16 short shuttle, which is just lightening quick.”

6. (5) 151 – Jaylon Carlies – LB, Missouri

“He’s a hybrid. He reminds me of the kid we have here, [Ronnie] Harrison. Harrison came in as a safety, played linebacker, moved back to safety…hes a tweener. This kid [Carlies] is the same thing, he’s a tweener. Good speed at 4.5 [40-yard dash time], so he’s another guy that’s probably [a] good special teams cover guy. He’s also a thumper, he’ll really hit you. He’s not a great change of direction guy…It sounds like they’re not really thinking about him at safety, they’re thinking about him more as a Will linebacker/special teams guy.”

7. (5) 164 – Jaylin Simpson – CB, Auburn

“I thought Simpson was a guy that caught my eye in the offseason, in the bowl games. I thought that his tape was pretty good, he ended up with a good workout, he was a 4.45 [40 time], at 39 ½” vertical. He’s not the biggest guy in the world at 179lbs. He’s a bit of a tweener. He’s a guy that’s played safety, played some corner.”

8. (6) 201 – Micah Abraham – CB, Marshall

“Abraham is kind of the same guy [as Simpson], smaller. 5’10”, 185lbs, of course his dad was Donnie [Abraham] who I coached against, who played for years in the NFL..I think they’re looking [for] in those two guys is perhaps a guy that has enough talent and metrics to be a natural nickel, and both of them have played nickel…They [the Colts] don’t really besides Kenny [Moore II], and Kenny’s outstanding, but they don’t really have a natural nickel…So I think what they’re hoping for late in the draft is a couple guys that kind of have that corner ability, but really could be that nickel in waiting.”