Poor Drafts Have Doomed the Indianapolis Colts in 2011

The 0-3 Colts are quickly becoming a train wreck. Their star quarterback with the new contract is watching from the action from a booth high above the action. The authority of their head coach is being publicly questioned. They are losing key defensive players to injury like moths lose their lives in a bug zapper (the latest additions to the injured reserve list include defensive captain Gary Brackett and starting safety Melvin Bullitt).

So how did the Colts get into this mess? A team with six Pro Bowl-caliber players shouldn't be in this kind of situation, even with Peyton Manning out until November (at the earliest).

While we certainly need to pin the blame partially on the players who haven't stepped up the way that they needed to, the lion's share of the blame has to fall squarely on the general management firm of Polian and Polian. Since 2007, the father/son duo of Bill and Chris Polian have missed in the draft too often. 

Good NFL teams draft well, cultivate talent from within and make smart trades to pick up key "missing" pieces. Only four guys on the Green Bay Packers' 53-man Super Bowl roster from last year were not acquired in some way by their GM, Ted Thompson. 

The Colts used to be known for drafting well in the early rounds and for finding undrafted gems like Brackett and Jeff Saturday. Their draft record since 2007 has been a shadow of what it once was, however. They still seem to be able to find one or two undrafted guys pretty consistently, but their first- and second-round draft picks have been deplorable.

Let's take a quick look at the Colts' high draft picks who haven't panned out as planned, starting with 2007.

2007 Draft 

First Round: Anthony Gonzalez

While Gonzalez is a nice player when he's healthy, he's not healthy very often. The former Buckeye standout played well at wide receiver in his first two years in the league, but missed significant time in 2009 and 2010 and is only now starting to see the field in 2011.

Second Round: Tony Ugoh

Ugoh was an unmitigated disaster. He never panned out at left tackle, despite the Colts trading up in the draft to get him.

Some offensive linemen just don't have the grit or chutzpah to consistently block speedy defensive ends. Ugoh is one of those guys. As Mike Chappell of the Indianapolis Star pointed out, the Ugoh bust directly led to the Colts having to draft Anthony Castonzo in this year's draft. That pick could have been used on a QB to develop under Manning or depth at linebacker or the secondary, two spots that are hurting with the loss of Brackett and Bullitt.

2008 Draft

Second Round: Mike Pollack

Pollack is currently Jeff Saturday's backup at center. When you draft a guy in the second round, you hope to get immediate contribution somewhere on the field. Pollack has not be consistent enough to provide that for the Colts.

Third Round: Phillip Wheeler

The only reason that Wheeler is starting at strong-side linebacker this week is because Brackett was injured. Otherwise Pat Angerer would be holding down that spot. Wheeler misses assignments and sometimes lapses into the arm-tackle technique, which is why he's been relegated to a backup role for most of his career.

2009 Draft

First Round: Donald Brown

I thought that Brown should have been cut after an underwhelming preseason this year. He is currently the Colts' third-string running back behind Joseph Addai and rookie Delone Carter.

In their long-term plans, the Colts didn't want to re-sign Addai this year, so they drafted Brown in 2009 with hopes that he could become the feature back and make Addai expendable. Brown never developed, however. His biggest fault is that he is an absolutely wretched pass-blocker. Running backs who can't pass-block in the Colts offense are useless. This guy is deadweight right now and an utter waste of a first-round pick.

Second Round: Fili Moala

While he is at least in the regular rotation at defensive tackle for the Colts, he is clearly not as good as Antonio Johnson or rookie Drake Nevis at this point in his career. From what I've seen, he often gets shoved around by offensive linemen in passing situations and doesn't get a good "push" when he's in there. 

2010 Draft

First Round: Jerry Hughes

It's conceivable that Hughes is even a bigger whiff than Brown. The highly touted defensive end out of TCU hasn't adapted well to the pro game. He was invisible last year (with the exception of an egregious blown contain on an Antonio Cromartie kick return in the Colts' playoff loss to the Jets). This year he can't get on the field either, with Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney as the premier pass-rushers and Tyler Brayton and Jamaal Anderson as the primary run-stopping ends.

It's probably about three months too early to call him a bust, but his bubble is stretching to the brink of popping right now, and I have little faith that he can turn it around this year. 

All of these poor picks have influenced how the Colts have drafted since 2007. They have been forced to stockpile offensive linemen (especially this year, with Castonzo in the first round and Ben Ijalana in the second round) and have neglected to pick up key depth for their perennially small, undermanned and often-injured defense.

Other teams that have drafted better have been able to build up more formidable and resilient defenses in recent years. The Detroit Lions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Packers have all drafted well and deep for their defenses and are currently reaping the dividends.

Losing a quarterback of Manning's pedigree would be devastating to any franchise, but the problem is compounded this year because Bill Polian (with help from his son) have drafted poorly since 2007.

Manning has been able to cover for the lack of defensive depth and the weak offensive line play for two years, but those squads are fully exposed now with Collins and Painter under center.

While Colts fans should be eternally grateful that Bill Polian masterminded the Colts' return to respectability as a franchise, that early success shouldn't exempt him from criticism for their current situation. If you need someone to blame for the mess that the Colts' season has become, look no further than the taciturn guy in the suit.