Winners and Losers from Indianapolis Colts' Draft
Though it started out with a feather-ruffling pick in the first round, the Indianapolis Colts put together a solid effort in the 2015 draft.
The team needed an influx of talent on defense and some depth on offense, and the draft picks reflected that as the Colts drafted defense with six of their eight picks. Five of the Colts' picks were from the state of Florida or California, as the Colts continue to draft heavily from the two hotbed states.
The Colts also made two trades in the day, which helped them move up in both the fourth and fifth rounds while giving up a seventh-round pick and dropping back just four spots for their second pick.
Here are the Colts' picks, in the order they were made:
- WR Phillip Dorsett, Miami
- CB D'Joun Smith, Florida Atlantic
- DE Henry Anderson, Stanford
- SS Clayton Geathers, Central Florida
- DT David Parry, Stanford
- RB Josh Robinson, Mississippi
- ILB Amarlo Herrera, Georgia
How do these picks affect the Colts going forward as they aim for a Super Bowl in 2015? To answer that, here are six winners and losers based on the Colts' draft.
Winner: Andrew Luck
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The Colts' first-round pick of Miami WR Phillip Dorsett turned some heads on Thursday night, for several reasons. Wide receiver wasn't anywhere near the top of the Colts' list of needs, as most expected the Colts to either go defense or offensive line in the first round.
If a receiver came, it was going to be late.
But, when the Colts picked at No. 29, Dorsett was on the top of their board. He was a player they had ranked in the top 20, according to Mike Wells of ESPN.com. The choice was easy, and instead of trying to fix a weakness, the Colts made a strength even stronger.
With another explosive threat added to his group of receiving options, quarterback Andrew Luck has to be salivating. People often point to the Colts' blowout loss to New England in the AFC Championship game as a reason the team needed to fix the defense, but the Colts only scored seven points in that game as the downfield passing offense stalled.
With Andre Johnson and Phillip Dorsett added to the mix, Luck will have his pick of big-time options at any given time. Throw in what the Colts hope to be an improved run game, and the Colts' offense should be one of the top five in the league next season.
Loser: Donte Moncrief
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Last season, the Colts drafted WR Donte Moncrief in the third round, and the ultra-athletic receiver looked to be a long-term starter opposite T.Y. Hilton.
Moncrief had a decent rookie season in 2014, catching 32 passes for 444 yards and three touchdowns, but slowed down near the end of the season and (outside of a 36-yard touchdown pass in the wild-card win over Cincinnati) was irrelevant in the postseason. Now the Colts have drafted Phillip Dorsett, who projects to be the Colts slot receiver and third on the depth chart.
On one hand, Moncrief still should be a big part of the Colts' long-term plans, and will likely slide in as Andre Johnson's replacement in a year or two. Dorsett doesn't play the same role as Moncrief, schematically, so I don't think it says anything about the Colts' faith in the second-year receiver.
On the other hand, it does likely mean that Moncrief will have less snaps to develop a rapport with Andrew Luck, which is as important of a factor in his development as anything else. It's a similar question for former CFL WR Duron Carter, who now has one more receiver in front of him blocking his way from making an impact.
Winner: The Colts Locker Room
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After a year marred by off-the-field instances and numerous young players failing to develop because of immaturity (Da'Rick Rogers, Loucheiz Purifoy), the Colts did everything they could to draft high-character kids in the 2015 NFL draft.
General manager Ryan Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano raved about first-round pick Phillip Dorsett's character in their post-draft press conference, per Colts.com, and the rookie, along with second-round pick D'Joun Smith, has killed his interviews since the pick.
"The media - selfishly - hopes D'Juon Smith gets a lot of playing time cause the kid is killing it on this conference call
— Mike Wells (@MikeWellsNFL) May 2, 2015"
The Colts' first sixth-round pick, Josh Robinson, has been described as an incredibly hard worker and strong-willed player, largely because of his background. Robinson's mother was incarcerated when Robinson was in high school, and he eventually lived out of his car for months. He grew up without a father, and, by his own admission, could have been a drug dealer. Instead, he made football his world, and should be an excellent addition to the Colts' locker room.
All of the Colts' draft picks have been described as high-character players (or in the case of DT David Parry, "sky-high" according to Dane Brugler of CBSSports.com), and it probably isn't a coincidence.
Loser: Colts' Negotiations with Anthony Castonzo
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One of the Colts' offseason priorities should have been to address the long-term potential at offensive tackle.
The Colts have very little depth behind Anthony Castonzo and Gosder Cherilus, with virtually zero replacements. The team does have several guards who can play tackle (Jack Mewhort, Todd Herremans, Joe Reitz), but none are ideal options. With Cherilus' injuries and Castonzo's upcoming contract, an offensive tackle early in the draft was a strong possibility for Indianapolis.
While the Colts forgoing tackles in the draft isn't the end of the world, it does now put them in a sticky situation with Castonzo's upcoming contract negotiations. While the Colts would like to keep him, they will lose some leverage if they don't have at least some sort of contingency plan.
Now, while the Colts did draft an offensive lineman, the pick didn't come until No. 255 in the seventh round, and is a complete unknown: Denzell Goode from Mars Hill University. It's reminiscent of the Colts taking Ulrick John out of Georgia State in 2014, and it will likely have the same amount of impact during Good's rookie year.
Winner: Defensive Line Coach Gary Emanuel
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One of the things the Colts have been drastically missing over the last few years is pressure from the defensive line. Cory Redding was the only Colt who could pressure the quarterback from the interior, and he's now in Arizona.
Now, the Colts have that defensive line playmaker, having drafted Henry Anderson out of Stanford. Anderson is a versatile player who will likely be lined up as a five-technique in base, but can slide inside in the Colts' nickel sets.
He is also one of the most disruptive players in this draft.
In 2014, Anderson had the most quarterback pressures of any interior defensive lineman in college football, according to Pro Football Focus. Anderson finished with top-four grades both against the run and against pass, and was an oft-mentioned sleeper in the pre-draft process.
Is Anderson going to come in and be a Day 1 starter? Probably not. But he's a tool that the Colts' defensive coaches can use to manufacture pressure from the interior, which will be a welcome addition.
Loser: Kelcy Quarles
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Before the draft, the Colts looked at their defensive line depth chart and saw a lot of young, inexperienced bodies that would need to step up in 2015 in order to field a passable unit.
One of those names, a name that Ryan Grigson and Chuck Pagano both mentioned to Colts.com's Kevin Bowen at the owners' meetings, was Kelcy Quarles. Quarles played just two games in 2014 and spent most of the season inactive or on the practice squad, but with the Colts' changes on the line (losing Cory Redding and Ricky Jean Francois), he was poised to potentially become a part of the rotation in 2015.
But in the draft, the Colts selected Henry Anderson (who has a similar athletic profile) and David Parry, two defensive linemen that should make the squad and push for playing time as rookies, making Quarles the odd man out.
With Josh Chapman, Kendall Langford, Arthur Jones, Montori Hughes and Zach Kerr ahead of him, it's going to be very difficult for Quarles to make the roster. While that additional depth and potential is great for the Colts, it's put Quarles in a very tough spot.
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