Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - INDIANAPOLIS COLTS TOP 10: Who Are Chris Ballard's BEST Draft Picks?

Starting point is 00:00:01 With 10 drafts under his belt, what are Chris Ballard's best value selections in his NFL draft history? Let's get to it. You are Locked on Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Welcome to Locked on Colts. I'm Zach Hicks. That's Jake Arthur. In today's episode is brought to you by Fanduel.

Starting point is 00:00:34 The biggest stage in world soccer is here. Let there be goal. on Fanduel visit Fanduil.com to get started now. On today's show, Jake and I have just been in love with the top 10 list of goals that we've been doing with the channel here lately. And because it's the offseason, we're going to keep rolling on with that trend. So Jake and I both made our individual top 10 lists on the most impactful, I guess, like, the best draft picks that Chris Ballad has made.

Starting point is 00:01:00 But we kind of use like what kind of surplus value they got from those picks in our rankings here. So it's not just the best players that Chris Ballard has drafted. It's also kind of factoring in like where guys were taken, how impressive of a find it was for the Colts and how impactful that player was throughout either the rookie contract and beyond with the team as well. So like you're going to notice here with like number 10, he would probably be a top five player that Chris Ballard is drafted. But the value of where Colts took him kind of limits his placing on this list. So without further do, Jake, let's jump into it and jump in. number 10, which is wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. Round two pick back in 2020, the 34th overall selection.

Starting point is 00:01:44 I do think his prime with the Colts is a little bit slept on by Colts fans because it was a couple years ago. I think like 2021 to 2023, he was a very, very good receiver, a good wide receiver won for this team. And he earned that second contract. It's just the back injuries really limited him in the last two years. And it did kind of limit his overall production. and I don't want to say it soured him in the minds of Colts fans,

Starting point is 00:02:08 but certainly lessened the thought that Colts fans have of him. But I think getting a receiver as high as they did, they got their wide receiver won for a good, you know, three to four years there. And he was a productive player for them. So he comes in at number 10 on our list here. Yeah, I think when you pick a guy at the top of the second like this, you hope for him to be as impactful as he was.

Starting point is 00:02:29 You know, the high end is a guy who can carry the receiving core for multiple years. like the 49ers, for example, with Deshawn Stribling. Like they probably hope they can get Michael Putman Jr. out of that. So I thought it was a good value pick. Like it was appropriate where it was. Nothing wrong with it whatsoever. And actually, you know, to get that type of guy who could produce really in year two, because in year one, you know, he was mixed in.

Starting point is 00:02:57 It was that 2020 group with Philip Rivers. And I think he had to split time with like T.Y. Hilton and Zach Paskill. very, you know, just kind of a spotty player, I think had just one touchdown, but then exploded in year or two with Carson Wentz, became like easily the focal point of the passing game, already came up with like some huge career moments right off the bat in year two. So, no, the Colts knocked it out of the park with that one, getting a guy that was productive and as quickly as he was. Yeah, for sure. Going to number nine, we are kind of projecting a little bit with this one, but it is center Tanner Bordellini in the 20th. 24 draft. I think this is our most recent draft pick edition that we're going to have on this entire list. But round four pick, 117th overall, the Colts have a guy who looks like their future

Starting point is 00:03:44 center. And we are projecting because he's only started one for the Colts now in his NFL career at this point. But he was playing at a Pro Bowl level for a good chunk of the season. I thought he was one of the better young players in football, especially for the Colts this past year. So Bordellini, it might be a little early to put him on this list, but I think he's going to take that step and be a pro bowler by the end of his rookie contract. And then I think going into a second contract with the Colts, he'll be one of the highest paid centers in football. Yeah, that's the thing is the center is kind of a shallow position across the league. And the Colts already appear to have one of the better ones, at least one of the best young centers in the

Starting point is 00:04:20 league. And you look at it, they get him in the fourth round. So a guy they, they talk really highly I have like really strong conviction about this guy, not only waiting until the fourth round, but he wasn't even the first offensive lineman they took. You know, they took McInsolves in the third round right before that. So to get a guy who, again, contributed early in his career, from not mistaken, I think he had a couple backup moments. He had a concussion that derailed that a little bit. But he played plenty as a rookie.

Starting point is 00:04:50 And then that allowed the Colts to say goodbye to Ryan Kelly, you know, a franchise cornerstone for a long time, almost 10 years. But yeah, part of it is projection, but Bordolini already is considered by, like, you know, football people, you know, people in the league to be one of the better young centers of the NFL. Yeah, very good player. And I expect even better things this next season. And I will say, I think the Colts would have taken him in round three if it weren't

Starting point is 00:05:18 for Consolvis being the last draftable tackle that they had in that range. That's why they had to go up and get Gonsolves. But I think if they missed out on Gonsolves, they would have taken Bordolini their in round three. So the Colts really had that conviction about him and they're really really really being proven right on the field each and every week. Number eight here, we're sticking with the offensive line, which is going to be a trend throughout this entire, this entire top 10 comes to Chris Fowler's draft history. And we're going with right guard Will Fries 2021, seventh round selection, number 248 overall. Now, Jake actually had fries higher than I did on this list, which is crazy because I'm like

Starting point is 00:05:53 the biggest Will Frizzan in existence. And I think part of this. it came down to Fry's production was limited to more of like just two seasons with the Colts, right, where it was half of 2022, half of 2024, and the entire 2023 season. Now he gave the Colts excellent surplus value on that rookie contract, right? Like he was much better than you would expect from a seventh round selection. But for me, I kind of valued other guys who had a little bit more longevity with the organization and more impact over multiple years. But there's no denying, whichever Scout decided that Fry's was the guy.

Starting point is 00:06:27 guy they should go for in round seven. Big props to that scout because finding a player who, I mean, I think he's one of the 10 highest paid right guards in football. One's 10 highest paid guards in football right now with the Minnesota Vikings. So Fry's certainly outperformed that pick and a very, very good young player across the league. Yeah. I mean, unfortunately, the Colts didn't really get the fruits of their labor too much with this one. But again, just for me, going from a guy who is a seventh round pick and then just fast

Starting point is 00:06:54 forwarding a few years later, one of the highest paid guards in the league, that like the Vikings priced the Colts out of being able to bring him back. You know, what was it, like 18 million a year or something like that? So I thought that was pretty big. And of course, something like that contributes to the Compick formula. If the Colts didn't have such a lucrative, free agent period of their own that year, that might have mattered a little more. But it was really just being able to find a player that late in the draft, almost

Starting point is 00:07:21 Mr. Irrelevant. And within a couple years, he turns into a starting guard and then is one of the best ones in the league. That's a very quick turnaround, someone who would have paid high dividends for them if they would have been able to afford keeping him around. Yeah, no, but I do think he certainly deserves to be on this list, just more in the back half because the Colts didn't get to reap the full benefits of his playing career.

Starting point is 00:07:45 Coming at number seven, though, a guy who would be arguably up there for number one, if this was purely off of talent, one of the best running backs in franchise history, Jonathan Taylor, 2020 round two pick, 41 overall. The Colts actually moved up to select him in that draft. She was a second running back taken. I actually had him above Jake, where Jake had him on his list, purely because the Colts did move up to get him. So they had that conviction to go up and get him.

Starting point is 00:08:12 But I do think that he has outperformed that draft position, certainly in this league. I mean, he's been one of the best running backs in football. One all pro appearance should have had a second all pro last year as well. he's just been a very good player for the Colts when healthy. I know there's that positional value argument and all that stuff. And he was still a fairly high pick for running back, still being a top 50 selection. So I understand him being a little bit lower for us,

Starting point is 00:08:36 but very, very good player. I mean, we've talked about Taylor so much this off season and the whole time we've had this show. It's been a pleasure to cover him and certainly a great find by the Colts. And remember, he was kind of like a luxury pick at the time, Jay, because we were all saying like, oh, they have Marlon Mac coming off 1,000 yards, or coming off 900 yards, whatever it was. Why are they taking Jonathan Taylor?

Starting point is 00:08:59 And it proved to be the right selection for the Colts. He's been outstanding for the team. Yeah, they had Naheem Hines too already. Maybe even Jordan Wilkins, like they had a complete running back room already. But no, honestly, if you would have had Taylor number one, I wouldn't have been mad at you. Like, this is, it's one of my favorite draft picks the Colts have ever had because he's someone, I started watching when he was a freshman at Wisconsin. And I was like, you know, it never works out to where the Colts will get him.

Starting point is 00:09:23 But, you know, it's fun to think about. But no, he was, I believe, the second running back, taking that year behind Clyde Edwards, O'air and the Chiefs, which sounds hilarious at this point. But the Colts, they were so worried they might not get them that they moved up just like three spots, I think. And Jim Mersey famously gave Chris Bauer that nudge, you know, go get your guy.

Starting point is 00:09:44 And they did. And, you know, immediately paid off. I think it was the final. week of this season. He ran for a franchise single, single game record, 257 yards. He's going to hold so many of the Colts rushing records by the time he leaves the team, or at least be top three. Like, he's already firmly entrenched as one of the top ones in franchise history. So, yeah, this was, this was a killer pickup and good courage by the Colts, I guess, to not worry too much about all the tread on the, you know, the lack of tread on the tires, I guess you could say.

Starting point is 00:10:20 Because again, he went to, as a true freshman, you know, he was touching the ball hundreds of times. He had a fumbling issue at Wisconsin. Wasn't much of a pass blocker, wasn't much of a past catcher. So like there were concerns about him coming out. But, you know, DeAndre Swift got taken after J.K. Dobbins after the Colts chose very wisely on that one. Still to this day, I think his fumbling issue in college was very, very overblown. He, He had like nine career fumbles on like 10,000 carries. Like, yeah, of course, the more you give the guy carries, he's going to have more fumbles. And I think half of them were in one season, too, if I'm not mistaken.

Starting point is 00:10:56 It was still overblown. But regardless, it helped the Colts get a very good player. Coming up, we're going to talk about numbers six through four, some star players on the interior of the offensive line and defensive line coming up for the Colts as well. The biggest stage in world soccer is here. And every match feels like it has the potential for a memorable moment. One goal can completely change the energy of a game, shift momentum, and alter the outcome in an instant. That's what makes tournament soccer so exciting from the opening whistle to the final kick. I mean, if you're watching today, presently Monday, Messi just became the all-time leading score in World Cup history.

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Starting point is 00:12:45 We're to lockdowncultz.com. All right, Zach, so this next player, again very polarize. for Colts fans, but nonetheless became a big hit success story. Right off the bat, Zyra Franklin, seventh round pick in a legendary 2018 draft, was the final pick, bookended it with Quentin Nelson, final pick of that draft for the Colts number 235, was a key special teamer for a few years until things started to get shaky with Shaquille Leonard's health. At that point, Franklin goes in, starts playing defense, and starts wiping away a lot of

Starting point is 00:13:20 Leonard's records. Yeah, no, he was a guy who certainly outperformed his draft selection. You know, when you take a guy in round seven, that's the area scout guy being like, hey, let's give a shot to this player here and see you if he can maybe make an impact on special teams. But Franklin was kind of that rags to riches guy, right, where he grounded his way up from special teams to the point where the Colts essentially picked him over Bobby O'Caricay a couple years later, I mean, one, because he was a little bit cheaper, but also because they viewed him as a guy who could step up and take on that role. And he was able to do so spectacularly.

Starting point is 00:13:54 So, you know, I know that it kind of soured a little bit later on in his tenure with the Colts. And it ultimately led to him getting traded this offseason for Kobe Wooden. But Zyri Franklin, I mean, a guy that you spend a seventh round pick on, you got, you know, what, half a decade of starting play from him. And he was able to get an all pro in there, a couple pro bowls. Like, he had a really good run with the Colts. And I think it'll be something that we look back on more favorably than what we did in the moment. Because, yes, there were some ups and downs.

Starting point is 00:14:23 But in the league where pretty much all linebacker play is bad, I thought that he was perfectly fine. Like he was a perfectly fine starting linebacker. He racked up the stats. He had that one year where he forced a ton of fumbles and took the ball away from opponents. And he was a good leader of that defense. It just didn't work out in his time here by the end. But certainly a surplus value type guy for the Colts and one of the better draft picks of the Chris valid era. Yeah, pro bowler and all pro in the seventh round, not too bad. Now, this next one,

Starting point is 00:14:52 it's not our number one, but it's easily one of my favorite picks. Like it's, the 2017 draft overall was not great for the Colts, but I think getting Grover Stewart in the fourth round with the 144th overall pick, one of the premier nose tackles in the league for several years now, that's huge. Yeah, no, for sure. I mean, getting just a plus starter on the interior and he's going to end up being a Colt for, I mean, I could realistically see him getting extended yet again after this year and having a decade plus with one team with the Colts, right? Because he was just, he's been that good of a player for them. He's been that valuable on their defense. Never a guy who's going to get the accolades like the Pro Bulls or the all pro nods because he's not like a full all around like

Starting point is 00:15:34 pass rush or anything. But one of the better run defenders in football had one of his best years of the pass rusher last year, though, under Louana Remo. So we'll see if it takes another jump this next season. But yeah, Grover Stewart, the heart and soul, the middle of the defense, a very fun player. And again, getting that kind of player in round four of your first draft. When you didn't, I mean, Chris Bowie didn't have his own scouts in here yet. You know, like it was just, you know, it was kind of working with Grigs and Scouts there and their last hurrah. So getting Grover Stewart in here, I think was a great value and certainly the best pick of that 2017 draft. Even if you don't even include like valuations,

Starting point is 00:16:10 like he's the best player that Colts selected. in that 2017 draft yeah without a doubt and i mean that's they they picked marlomeck right there in the fourth round too and i mean anthony walker was in that draft as well right fifth round yeah yeah um yeah coming up here next let's talk about number four this one that's not polarizing for me but like you could knock it down a peg or two right tackle braden smith again in that story 2018 draft round two pick 37 so the colts pick quentin nelson at six which a lot of people already like a I don't know. Then they go Shaquille Leonard at 36, which linebacker who no one knew.

Starting point is 00:16:49 And then they double dip with another, we thought, guard with their next pick. Everyone's like, what are we doing? So it started out as like a draft that people were real iffy on. And it's going to wind up being one of the most legendary drafts in Colts history and doing big part to Braden Smith. Yeah, I actually would have had this in the top two or three if the Colts and tended on him being a tackle from date one. Just because they got a little bit lucky with that. Now, I'm not saying that nobody in that building believed he could play tackle,

Starting point is 00:17:21 but it was certainly more of a debate when he got kicked out the tackle. And it was more of like a last ditch effort thing. And then when it was working, they kept him in it. And then that was the story of his career, right? Being a right tackle going forward when the Colts fully believed him being a guard when they selected him. So I would have had him a little bit higher if they drafted this guard out of Auburn and moved him to tackle right away and ended up.

Starting point is 00:17:42 working like this because that would have been insanely impressive. But nonetheless, it's still great to get, you know, again, a right tackle who started for, what, eight years, nine years with you guys, whatever it was, like really, really good stretch with the Colts. And, you know, it sucks that it kind of came to an end the way it did with the injuries and just, you know, his mental health and all that stuff happening. But Bray and Smith just gave the Colts so many good years at right tackle. And an offensive tackle is hard to find outside of round one.

Starting point is 00:18:11 Yeah. If you look at like the highest paid offensive tackles in the league, like of the guys making more than $20 million, there's only like two or three of them that were drafted outside of round one. And one of them is Dan Moore. It doesn't even count. Like Dan Moore was a desperation signing in free agency. So counting the guys who actually deserve $20 million, you know, it's very few that were drafted outside of round one. But Braden Smith was certainly worth that money when he was here. Very good player for the Colts.

Starting point is 00:18:38 I hope he has a good year with the Texans again. but was awesome for the Colts. And what a great find there in round two to find a tackle that you were able to start for seven, eight years, whatever it was for the Colts. Yeah, it's crazy the value the Colts have gotten out of, out of the offensive tackle positions, given what little resources they've allocated for it. You know what I mean? We're going to talk about that more shortly, so I don't want to spoil it too much.

Starting point is 00:19:04 But yeah, none of their, they have like, they had cornerstone tackles. and they didn't have to really spend premium price on it. Other teams try and do that and whiff badly, you know. Yeah, I mean, the offensive line in general. I mean, over half this list is going to be offensive linemen that Chris Ballard has just hit on offensive line consistently. And I think if you ask the average Colts fan, they would say like Chris Strasser wasn't that great of an O-Line coach.

Starting point is 00:19:28 So maybe we give some of the recent stuff to Tony Sparano Jr. But even the early stuff when they were hitting on like the fries and they were hitting on, you know, Brayden Smith. like I just think that they're they know what they're doing when it comes to evaluating offensive line. If anything, keep Chris Ballard along along for the ride after this year, just purely for offensive lines. Keep them in like an advisory O line drafting job or something like that. But coming up, you guys know who the top three names are going to be on this list. I think it was set in stone going in. But what order do we have them in? That's going that question is going

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Starting point is 00:21:56 Welcome back, everybody. We are counting down our top 10 best draft picks of the Chris Ballard era. Again, this is not the best players. It's just mixing like the best value they've gotten. and production. So it is kind of blending the best players with the value at which they were taken. Just to run you through again at number 10,

Starting point is 00:22:15 we had Michael Pittman Jr. Number nine, Tanner Bordellini. Number eight, Will Fries. Seven, Jonathan Taylor. Six, Zire Franklin. Five, Grover Stewart. Four, Braden Smith. And now number three, Zach,

Starting point is 00:22:29 the best player that Chris Foward has drafted, Quentin Nelson. Yeah, the only reason he falls a little bit to number three is you took him, sixth overall, right? The expectation was at the very minimum a Pro Bowl level guard. I think when you take a guard that high, you're actually expecting probably more of an all pro level guard. And he certainly exceeded those expectations, but again, the expectations were already so high for that selection, which is why he fell a little bit to number three on this list. But even with all

Starting point is 00:22:59 that being said, like, I think in the best case scenario, getting a guy like this, like this was the best case scenario, right, when you take Quentin Nelson, getting a future. Hall of Famer, one of the best guards in football from day one. He has exceeded everything that you could have ever hoped for with that selection. So Quentin Nelson, one of the best in this organization's history. It just sucks. It's kind of coming in a time where they're not winning a ton of games, right? They're not winning a bunch of playoff games.

Starting point is 00:23:24 So it's not going to be looked on as like this favorable time with the Colts. But he is an all-time great in this organization. We'll be in the Ring of Honor. We'll be in the Hall of Fame. Outstanding football players. It was actually finally on the top 100 list from the NFL, the NFL Network's top 100, finally got back. They only put like three offensive linemen on there per year.

Starting point is 00:23:45 So it's always hard for him to get in there. But yeah, the guy is more all pros and he has NFL top 100 appearances in the NFL. But outstanding player, I think that well deserved every accolade he's ever gotten. And he comes at number three here on our list. Yeah. Again, easily the biggest success story they've had among guys. where, you know, you take them. But at number six, everyone said, if you take a guard at number six,

Starting point is 00:24:11 he better be essentially what Nelson has turned out to be. So, yeah, he's just been a phenomenal player, though, and just kind of the heartbeat of the team for a long time helped turn around the culture of their offense. And specifically an offensive line that was just awful for a long time leading up to it. Like, that line was bad. So you have Ryan Kelly there, who's trying to turn things around. And then you give him a guy like Quentin Nelson next to him.

Starting point is 00:24:38 And then it really just kind of sparked things throughout there. But yeah, Quentin Nelson, phenomenal pickup. And he wasn't, like, that wasn't a slam dunk. There was a few other guys that Colts could have taken. You know, Bradley Chubb was someone right there in the mix. Because remember, they moved down from three to six. They didn't have to do that. Bradley Chub was in the mix.

Starting point is 00:24:56 Denzel Ward. There was talks since Andrew Luck had been experiencing injuries that Sam Darnold could even make some sense. So they stuck to their guns, took the best player they've, felt the most appropriate player they felt. And they've been rewarded handsomely on his behalf. So, Zach, let's move on to this next one. And you and I had number one and number two switched. But ultimately, I was swayed by your decision because I see where we're coming from here. But let's go to number two. It's linebacker Shaquille Leonard, who was the 36th overall pick in that same

Starting point is 00:25:31 2018 draft. Now, this was considered a big shocker. Not to to me. I liked Leonard going into the draft, but like a lot of people hated that pick because he's from South Carolina State. He's a undersized linebacker. Kevin Hickey. We all remember what you wrote back then. You can never, never run from this, Kevin. No, but I mean, a lot of people hated that pick, but I mean, he fit exactly the type of of linebacker that Matt Iberfuss's defense called for. And immediately, like the guy was, I mean, he was the defense. defensive version of Quentin Nelson. Like, Pro Bowl and All-Pro every year.

Starting point is 00:26:09 Defense of Rookie of the Year, like, the guy was incredible until he wasn't. He had that surgery on his back to help fix, like, the ankle problems as well. And like the whole thing went haywire. And he was never quite the same. But the Colts got like a four-year stretch of, like, he was going to go to the Hall of Fame. If he kept that up, he was unbelievable. Yeah, he certainly would be number one on this list if it would have aged better. like if he would have performed after the rookie contract.

Starting point is 00:26:37 But I would say statistically speaking, it's one of the greatest rookie contract runs we've ever seen in the NFL. I mean, it was what, four all pros. I think it was three pro bowls in four all pros, which is really weird. Yeah, he didn't make the pro bowl his first year, but he was like first team all pro. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:26:53 So I think it was four all pros, three pro bowls and just racked up the stats. I mean, every counting stat you could look for from tackles, interceptions, forced fumbles. I mean, he's up there with all time greats, even in career force fumbles interceptions and he only had like the four year stretch that we're looking at here. So he was awesome on that rookie contract.

Starting point is 00:27:12 It's just the back injury limited it. And unfortunately we couldn't see him fully become, you know, the Hall of Fame player that he was destined to become. So it's unfortunate how all that went down, but we'll always have those four years where he was like, I mean, he was awesome. Just a statistical machine on defense and did everything you want in the middle of that defense. But moving to number one, and I feel like I was obligated to have him number one because I always call him the best pick of the Chris Ballard era. So it would have been disingenuous if I didn't put him here. But Baron Hart, Reimann left tackle in 2022, the round three pick, pick number 77. And again, man, I just have to reiterate how hard it is to find an offensive tackle outside of round one, let alone outside of round two as well.

Starting point is 00:27:57 The Colts were taking a big swing on a player like Ryman, who was not a full-time tackle as all years in college. he was already an older prospect, and he was a bit undersized as well. And we saw that first year when he got out there, Jake, like, it was tough. Like power was tough for him to block. He did get a little bit better in the final, like, four games. But there were some real questions about him going into year two and going into 2023. And he just answered all those questions. I mean, he was outstanding for the team.

Starting point is 00:28:26 Emerged as this very good offensive tackle. And I think right now he's sitting right around like a Pro Bowl level guy. feels like he's getting better and better every year. And again, the big point here is finding an offensive tackle that late to be your franchise left tackle, the guy who, like, you finally found your replacement for Anthony Costanzo, and this guy's going to be in that role for a long time. To find that in round three, though, is just incredible. I mean, just think of all the best left tackles in the league right now.

Starting point is 00:28:54 And outside of Jordan Milata, think of who else is drafted outside of round one. Dion Dawkins, but he was like early round two as well. Like finding one in the middle of round three. three is tough and the Colts just found an absolute gem and Bairnhart Rhyman. That was the tiebreaker for me is you can find really good linebackers in round two. Like just like Leonard the reigning defensive rookie the year, Carson, Schwessinger was taken at the top of round two. You know, Fred Warner, round two. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:29:21 Or no, Fred Warren's like round. He was three or four. Three or four actually. Yeah. The Colts had gotten O'Caricay in round three. Like you can get good linebackers. But to get your friend. franchise left tackle who wound up starting as a rookie midway through and the third round is crazy.

Starting point is 00:29:39 And when you go back, I mentioned this, I think on the squad show not long ago, but if you go back and look at pictures of rhyming like at the combine or as a rookie compared to like last year, the transformation he's gone through is unbelievable. And that work ethic and the production they're getting from him is the reason why they made him a $100 million man last all season. So they've got an enormous return on investment here. It's just, it's very uncommon to find such a critical piece of your roster that late. And it's not like they drafted him and developed him for two or three years like the Eagles do. He started as a rookie, again, midway through and out of circumstance, but they found a guy to be able to play right away. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:30:21 So that's such a huge move. And, I mean, Ballard, may have just had his final draft with the Colts, but I mean, he'll always go down for having this one. Yeah, arguably, you know, the second most important position in football. And the Colts found that in round three. So that's why I have Ryman number one. And I have been saying that for like two years now with the Colts. Some honorable mentions before we get out of here, though.

Starting point is 00:30:46 Jake and I had a couple of little debates about a couple of these players. I had Bobby O'Caricay in my top 15. Didn't break my top 10. But Bobby O'Caricay, I did have him the top 15. but I understand not having been here because he didn't last pass the rookie contract. Inversely, Jake actually had Marlon Mack in his top 10, but because I didn't have Mac in my top 15, we had to leave them off the top 10 list. But Marlon Mac.

Starting point is 00:31:09 There's a couple of them like that where the variance was pretty high. And I was like, let's go with the best one here. Yeah, Marlon Mac, really good two-year stretch with the Colts. And unfortunately, just kind of cut down due to injuries. A couple of players who are still on the team, though, Alec Pierce, we both had in our top 15. I think if we were to do this in like two to three years from now, it might look a lot better because he's going to be the wide receiver one going forward. Josh Downs, we both considered, but just not enough production.

Starting point is 00:31:36 And then Tyler Warren, I actually had number 11. I couldn't put him a little bit higher because it's only the one year, but he's already surpassed expectations. If he were like a second round pick that had the year he had, he would have made the top 10 for me. But because he was taken so high and it was only one year, I couldn't get him in the top 10. but I have at number 11.

Starting point is 00:31:55 So I tried. I really tried to get him in there, but I couldn't get him in that top 10. Let us know in the comment section below, though, guys. What do you think? What do you think about Ryman being number one? Do you agree? Do you disagree?

Starting point is 00:32:06 I know a lot of Colts fans out there. I think he's a little bit overpaid and overrated. I think he's one of the most underrated players on the Colts. So let us know in the comment section below. Thank you all for tuning in to Locked on Colts. We'll be back yet again tomorrow. So make sure you subscribe and follow Locked on Colts. You get all of the latest episodes.

Starting point is 00:32:22 And if you don't already, make sure you're following at Lockdown Colts at Jake Arthur NFL and at Zach Kicks 2 all on socials. And if you never miss an episode, the Everydayer Club is built for you. Get us ad-free plus members-only Discord access and much more. Head to LockdownColts.com to join the club. Thank you all for tuning in and we'll catch you guys back here tomorrow afternoon.

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