As the Indianapolis Colts continue their building toward Super Bowl 51 in Houston, the NFL Draft served as a way for general manager Ryan Grigson to help shore up the offensive line.
The Indianapolis Colts placed a heavy emphasis on protecting quarterback Andrew Luck, selecting four lineman with their seven picks in the 2016 NFL Draft.
In the first round, the Colts potentially found Andrew Luck the Jeff Saturday to his Peyton Manning, selecting Alabama center Ryan Kelly with their first pick in the draft. Kelly only allowed four QB rushes and ZERO sacks in his 2015-16 national championship campaign for the Crimson Tide.
Alongside Kelly, the Colts offensive line added offensive tackles Le’Raven Clark out of Texas Tech and Joe Haeg out of North Dakota State, as well as center Austin Blythe out of Iowa. This offensive bolstering led to the Colts cutting OL Khaled Holmes.
The Colts also added to their defense through the draft, though many weren’t happy with the lack of pass rush that was acquired. Indianapolis drafted safety T.J. Green in the second round, a player many had as a first-round talent. The Colts also added defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway out of Texas, and linebackers Antonio Morrison out of Florida and Trevor Bates out of Maine.
For a complete analysis of the Colts draft picks, head over to ESPN NFL Nation reporter Mike Wells’ complete draft analysis.
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