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The Indianapolis Colts have reached the end of the 2019 season. The team finished with a 7-9 record and on a 1 game losing streak as they lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars. As the season has finished where will the Colts be drafting?
First of all, the Colts finished third in the AFC South and missed the playoffs for the fourth time in the last five years. Therefore the Colts would hold the 13th overall pick in the first round.
Record: 7-9
Playoff position: N/A
Previous game: Jacksonville Jaguars (L)
SOS: .518 (T-7th)
Biggest needs: QB, WR, DT, LT?
The Colts faced a strength of a schedule of .518 which was tied for 7th strongest in the league. The Colts ended up losing their final outing 38-20 to the Jacksonville Jaguars which locked in their record for the season at a below .500 record of 7-9 which was their second below .500 record in he last five seasons. The Colts also missed out on a playoff berth for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
As the Colts ended the season with a 7-9 record they locked themselves into the 13th overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft. This would be the third time the Colts will be drafting inside the top 15 in the last five seasons, those picks netted the Colts Malik Hooker and Quenton Nelson and whoever the Colts take in 2020.
The Colts have glaring needs, which is probablywhy they ended up with a 7-9 record. The teams top needs appear to be; quarterback, wide receiver, defensive tackle and maybe left tackle.
Quarterback:
Arguably the teams biggest need is the most important position on the field. The Colts current quarterback situation isn’t ideal. Jacoby Brissett had big shoes to fill after the out of the blue Andrew Luck retirement but unfortunately he failed to do so. Brissett was unable to steer the team in the right direction and too many times failed to impress.
Possible draft QB options: Justin Herbert, Jordan Love, Jacob Eason and Jake Fromm.
Wide Receiver:
If the Colts need one thing on offense that’s not a quarterback it’s a wide receiver. The Colts were destroyed by injuries in 2019 at the wide receiver position. The Colts depth chart to begin the year looked impressive with Hilton, Funchess, Campbell, Rogers, Cain and Pascal. But at the end of the season all that remained was Hilton and Pascal. Funchess lasted all of 3 quarters of football before breaking his collarbone and ending up on IR, Campbell battled three different injuries all before ending up on IR, Hilton missed six games and for the first time in his career didn’t post a 100 yard game all season. The Colts desperately need help at the wide receiver position to help Brissett or whatever quarterback starts in 2019 and to lighten the pressure on Hilton.
Possible draft WR options: Tee Higgins, Brandon Ayiuk, Justin Jefferson and Michael Pittman Jr.
Defensive Tackle:
The Colts are in dire need of an upgrade at the defensive tackle position. Dencio Autry had a down year, Margus Hunt needs to be cut and Grover Stewart had a mini breakout year so in all the defensive tackles were ineffective. The Colts are in need of a defensive tackle who can handle the run but also create interior pressure. One of the main reasons the Colts struggled on defense all starts up front and it can be solved with consistent pressure from the defensive line especially inside.
Possible draft DT options: Javon Kinlaw, Neville Gallimore, Raekwon Davis and Ross Blacklock.
Left Tackle:
The Colts have a franchise left tackle, one who is top 10 in the league. However, he is set to become a free agent and is contemplating retirement. So now the Colts may have a huge hole to fill. If Castonzo does end up retiring the Colts will have to look at upgrading as the only tackles the Colts have on the roster are college guard turned right tackle Braden Smith and soon to be free agents Joe Haeg and Le’Raven Clark.
Possible draft LT options: Tristan Wirfs, Lucas Niang, Trey Adams and Austin Jackson.
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