Stampede Blue

I want to take a moment here to give some credit to TrueBlue87 for his awesome job in Mocking the Draft's live draft this past week. He did a great job, and although there were some picks that I disagreed with, I thought he did the best possible given the players were available. Personally, when I looked at the results, it killed me seeing Josh Robinson and Jarius Wright taken immediately before our 5th round pick., and the lack of talent at good value in the middle rounds must have been frustrating. However, I am optimistic that the Grigson, Irsay, and Pagano can put together an even better draft. Although it is a talented guard class, they still seemed way overvalued in this draft. Also, every year, analysts and writers are surprised by the quarterbacks that are way overdrafted, and I can definitely see a desperate general manager taking a gamble on Tannehill or Foles in the first round that would push other players down to us in later rounds. Also, as much as I love Mocking the Draft, the guys they feature often times shoot way up readers boards. Players like Josh Norman and Adrian Hamilton will probably be available at least a bit later than where they are projected.

As far as this mock goes, I've thrown in a trade. I'm not as high on the value on the players that project to be available in the second round, but I'm really excited about the players that should be available in the third round. Accordingly, I've thrown in a trade of my own devising, giving the Bears our second round pick for both their third round picks and a fourth round pick. The Bears actually come out ahead in this trade according to the trade value chart, but I'd be all for making this trade. Also, at the end of the draft, I'm also going to include a few players that project to go undrafted that I'd like the Colts to take a look at.

1st Round - Andrew Luck - I don't care what you think about Luck as a prospect. You have to draft him if anything for his perceived value by other teams.

3rd Round - George Iloka, SS - He's an absolute giant in the secondary at a verified 6'3.5" and 222lbs. He has good coverage skills, having played some cornerback, and despite some issues with his tackling technique seems a lock to be an asset against the run with his size and strength. The coverage skills and size combination is definitely something to get excited about. I think if there is any draft prospect with the potential to match up against tight ends like Gronkowski or Graham, it is Iloka. Also, I found his results from the Boise State "Pro Day" last year, and his measurables are also impressive. His 40 yard dash time (4.49s), his 3 cone drill time (6.57s), and his 20 yard shuttle time (3.93s) would all have been the best out of all safeties at the combine last year. His broad jump, (10'.75") would have been third.

3rd Round - Josh Norman, CB -Norman is an athletic instinctual cornerback with good ball skills and the size to cover bigger receivers. Really the only thing bringing him down is that he's from a relative unknown of a school, Coastal Carolina. However, he played well in the East-West Shrine Game, showing that he can compete against higher level competition than the D-3 receivers he faced regularly. This slot might be a little low for Norman, but cornerback seems to be one of those positions that always slips a bit lower than everybody expects, and I'm hoping for something of a chain reaction with Minnifield, Gilmore, and Dennard that makes Norman available here.

3rd Round - Michael Brewster, C - I can't help but feel that Jeff Saturday's departure is imminent, especially given the news that the Colts would want him in their front office were he to retire. While it will be impossible to recreate everything that Saturday brought to the team, it'll be important to make an investment in the center position. The Saturday-Manning relationship was one that defined the Colts, and hopefully we could recreate a similarly beneficial dynamic with Luck and Brewster. Brewster went into the 2011 season as the top-rated center prospect, but had a tough year and has now dropped behind Ben Jones and Peter Konz. However, Brewster has been consistently good, and I can forgive struggles it what has been a very tough year for the Ohio State football team. He's flexible, intelligent, and keeps his pad level low, and should be an asset in both pass protection and run blocking.

4th Round - Brandon Brooks, OG - Brooks was a player I thought was overdrafted in the Live Draft if only because the lack of value teams place on guards during the draft. Last year only 13 guards were selected and only 4 of them were chosen before the first round. While this year's draft certainly won't be identical to last years, I see Brandon Washington, Cordy Gleen, Kelechi Osemele, David DeCastro, and maybe even Senio Kelemete going before Brooks. He also hasn't been invited to the scouting combine, so that has to be a bit of a blow to his stock. At this point in his career, Brooks doesn't have the best technique and will definitely need some work once he gets to the professional level. However, at 6'5" and 343lbs, he has all the natural strength that an offensive lineman could ever need. I think Brooks could start early in his career and with a little improvement to his technique, he would be an intimidating presence on our offensive line.

4th Round - Jarius Wright, WR- I still don't quite understand why Joe Adams is being projected to go a round or two higher than Wright, but I can't say I'm arguing with it. Playing on the same team with similar physical abilities, Wright far outproduced Adams last year. While they both have blistering speed,Wright has better hands and route-running skills. I think I've drafted him in all but one of my mock drafts, and unless his stock skyrockets after the combine, I don't see that really changing.

4th Round (Compensatory) - Billy Winn DE/DT - Winn is an experienced defensive lineman with good athleticism and a great motor. He plays hard against the run and always does his best to get to the quarterback even though his pass rushing skill are lacking. He also has good tackling skills and good football instincts. What I like most about Winn, however, is his experience in a 4-3/3-4 hybrid scheme where he played defensive end and defensive tackle in both schemes. This versatility and skill set should be valuable to the new Colts defense.

5th Round - Josh Robinson, CB - Robinson is a player I have falling a little bit just because at present moment, he hasn't put the game all together mentally. He has all the physical tools to succeed in the league, and when he's on his game, he can be very, very good. He shut down A.J. Green last year in their bowl game, and Green's no slouch. Overall though, he's too reactive and not instinctive enough. I believe that Pagano and the rest of the coaching staff can help him to reach his full potential, but he should at least be able to take away the nickelback position for Lacey.

6th Round - Rhett Ellison, TE - As we transition to the Luck era, I'm not sure that Clark is a luxury we can afford to keep on the roster. He worked well with Manning, but he's been injury-prone and he didn't perform that well last year, leaving it uncertain as to how well he can play with other quarterbacks. Rhett Ellison hasn't been exceptionally productive as a college player, but he shows some burst while running his routes and has the frame to block. He's kinda a stop gap option right now, but I think he at least adds another dimension to our offense. It's kinda obvious that we're going to run when we send Eldridge out.

7th Round - Chigbo Anunoby, DT/NT - At 6'4" and 324lbs, Anunoby is a big nose tackle who carries his weight well and has the strength to hold his point of attack. He has great ball awareness and does as well as any player his size can be expected to get to the ball carrier. He can explode off the line of scrimmage, but otherwise is unimpressive in pass rushing. He has a high-running motor, which is always nice. With his strength and skill set, I can see him being our nose tackle of the future, but at the very least he should be able to add to our rotation at defensive tackle.

7th Round (Compensatory) - Rico Wallace, WR - I expect Rico Wallace to be the Pierre Garcon of this draft class. At 6'3" and 210lbs, Wallace has good size and his great speed shows up on the little tape of him that is available. He has good hands and is an effective red-zone target. He's absolutely dominated his competition in college. Only problem is that he went to Shenandoah and has been playing against D-3 competition for his career. However, his coaches absolutely rave about him, and I believe he has the skills and physical ability to make the transition to professional football.