Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - LOCKED ON COLTS 3/31/20: Tyquan Lewis and Quincy Wilson on Hot Seat; Paying Marlon Mack vs. Drafting Replacement

Episode Date: March 31, 2020

On today's episode, Stampede Blue's Zach Hicks is back to go over the latest news in Colts land. What were his thoughts on the Xavier Rhodes and Sheldon Day signings? Plus, what does signing veteran CB T.J. Carrie mean for Quincy Wilson's future with the Colts?Signing Day also is a warning sign to Tyquan Lewis, who has an uphill battle to find playing time on the defensive line. If Indy adds to their defensive line in the draft, Lewis could be gone as well.Finally, we close on the topic of paying Marlon Mack or drafting his replacement. What about names like JK Dobbins, Jonathan Taylor, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, or Cam Akers on Day 2. Appalachian State's Darrynton Evans is a Day 3 sleeper to consider.Will the Colts kick off the 2020 draft by adding playmakers? That seems to be the plan right now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello everybody, welcome back into your latest episode of Locked on Colts, part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Today's audience is Evan Sedrin, joined by our weekly guest on the show here throughout the year, Zach Hicks of Stampede Blue. Zach, how are you doing today? Pretty good, man. You know, just trying to kind of stay alive in this weird time. Yeah, definitely agree with you there.

And certainly interesting time, and we're going to keep you guys busy here on Locked on Colts. I know, Zach, you certainly are with your pieces over at Stampede Blue and Cover One as well. But let's dive in now to some Colts news to start off. We're going to dive into some draft talk for the rest of the show here. But to get some house clean news out of the way here, to get your overall thoughts on the Xavier Rhodes signing, which was one year, $5 million guaranteed with incentives thrown in,

it seems like really they just replaced Pierre Desir who's making about $2 million more than Xavier Rhodes was set to and really just betting that Xavier Rhodes can bounce back in a system where he has his former defensive backs coaches in Jonathan Gannon and Alan Williams. Yeah, I think you said it well with mentioning that he has those former defensive back coaches here in Indy. And I think that's going to be a good kind of place for him to start here in Indy,

you know, trying to get his career back on pace. Because, you know, he went from 2017 being an all-pro with the Vikings, and now he's, you know, he's not really what he once was. You know, I went into his film when I wrote a big article for Stampede Blue, if you guys want to check that out. And kind of the overall sense I got from watching it is, you know, he's still really good with his technique. He's still a really good physical corner,

and he still has moments of being really good and being in the right position. I just think the biggest issue right now is his overall speed and athleticism have really kind of gone away over the last couple years, and that's definitely a bit of a concern. You know, you don't want to leave him on an island on the outside with no safety help. I think that's just a recipe for disaster. But I think with the Colts type of scheme, you know, with their zone heavy scheme, their

cover two heavy scheme, where he can kind of be a little bit more in towards the line of scrimmage and kind of play downhill and be physical, I think it's kind of a good fit. So, you know, based on how they both played last year, I don't know if he's a pure upgrade over Pierre Desir. But I think when you add in that potential that he could at least get somewhat to where he once was in 2017 when, you know, he was a top five corner in the game, I think that taking the chance on Rhodes and kind of letting Desir walk, I don't really have too much of an issue with that. Yeah, like you mentioned there, I think we're going to still see a lot of

zone cover from the Colts whenever Matty was still around, which is, I think, going to be for a very long time with this current regime with Frank Reich and such. But when you look at Rhodes and especially the addition of DeForest Buckner to start things off here, Zach, do you think we're going to see maybe more man coverage this year? I know Xavier Rhodes struggled with that a little bit last year, but you have DeForest Buckner and Justin Houston, those guys up front.

You have Rakia Sin as an aggressive long arm corner, Marvell Tell falls in that category as well, Kenny Moore. It feels like they have all these corners in place where they can play man coverage a lot more often if they want to. Yeah, you know, I think that was always the plan. You know, you always hear that Ballard admires the Seattle Seahawks system. And kind of that cover two base is what the Colts play. It's kind of like a branch of that cover three, you know, press man type that the Seahawks play.

It's kind of like an off-brand of that and kind of the beginning levels before you get to something like that so I think the key was really just building up this defense getting it ready for jumping to that next level and eventually getting to more cover three and getting to more press man type stuff so you know we kind of saw it a little bit last year they had some games where they went pretty heavy press man other games where they relied a lot on their zone. So we'll have to kind of see how it goes with all that. But, yeah, they definitely have the personnel to run press man a little bit more. I mean, outside of Rhodes, you know, like you said, Tell,

Brockison, Kenny Moore is a long corner as well. And they also have, you know, Lee Cooker, who's a really good kind of single high type safety who can kind of play deep in that man, that press man type defense. So, you know, it's still to be seen if they're going to go to more man coverage. And I think, you know, overall, I think that was overall plan when he was building this quarterback group.

So they definitely have the personnel for it now. And moving on a little bit here, Zach, to Sheldon Day, the other sign that broke, I believe, 24 hours before the Xavier Rhodes signing, because this one I think surprised me a little bit just because it was under the radar once. Sheldon Day is more of a rotational defensive lineman. He won't be a day-one starter, I imagine. But when you look at the contract details on him, one year, $1.8 million,

with only $1 million guaranteed. I think that's a steal of a contract that Chris Bauer fought there because I think Sheldon Day has long been interested, or the Colts have long been interested in Sheldon Day, Zach, because I believe they put in a claim for Sheldon Day before the 49ers got it because they had a better record in the waiver claim so what's your overall thoughts on Sheldon Day and I think from a standpoint of just comparing apples to oranges versus Marcus Hunt I think it's a big upgrade yeah you know I think you know last year we kind of saw what the Colts especially when Marcus Hunt's

play went downhill the Colts were very desperate to kind of get more depth on that defensive line. You know, they put claims in for Trayvon Coley, and I think there was another guy they brought in, and I know they brought in Kyle Pico at one point throughout the year as well. So they brought in a lot of guys trying to fill that last tackle spot, and they really didn't have much success with it. You know, these guys weren't terrible, but they weren't really, you know, guys who stayed along with the team or really made an impact at all.

So I think the big key with this is just shoring up that depth. You know, they have three guys that are really good. And Grover Stewart, who's a great one-two down type player, Danico Autry, who had a little bit of a down year, but I think he's going to bounce back this next season. And DeForest Buckner, who's a superstar. But they really need to round out that group and get another player in there. And I think getting a guy like Sheldon Day, who's very active,

has very strong hands, he's good in the run game, and he can also provide a little bit in the pass rush game. I think getting him as that fourth guy, you know, back of one tech, back of three tech, whatever he's going to be, I think getting him in there is a really good deal, you know. And for $1.8 million, I think that's a really good price. So, yeah, shoring up that defensive line, you know, Ballard's always been big on building up the trenches,

and this offseason he's really built up that defensive trench. So I think it's a good signing for sure. Zach, what do you think this means for a guy like Tyquan Lewis? Because we're going to talk about another guy in Quincy Wilson here in a few minutes on the TJ Carey signing, which happened yesterday. But when you look at Sheldon Day and his high effort, high motor, former team captain at Notre Dame, I think it's going to be a fan favorite here, having all the local ties to Indiana with Warren Central

and going to Notre Dame and such. But I think with a high effort, high energy guy, that he could play into another small contract for Colts, I think that's highly possible with him. What do you think this means for a guy like Tyquan Lewis, especially for getting Day? Because I think this is not only a wake-up call for Tyquan Lewis, Zach, but I think this could be maybe a guy who could be on the chopping block

here come July at training camp. Yeah, you know, personally, I don't really think it affects him too much. I think where we'll see an impact is if they bring in another strong side defensive end, you know, whether it be the draft or still in this free agent period. And the main reason I say that end, you know, whether it be the draft or still in his free agent period. And the main reason I say that is, you know, we've always heard talk that the Colts want to play Tyquan Lewis, a defensive tackle.

You know, they want to play him at three tech. They want to play him at defensive tackle. But the truth of the matter is, and I don't have the numbers in front of me. I probably should grab those numbers and check it out. But the truth of the matter is, he's only really played defensive end for the Colts. You know, every time they got him out there,

they've had him at defensive end, typically at that strong played defensive end for the Colts. You know, every time they got him out there, they've had him at defensive end, typically at that strong side defensive end spot. And I'm not saying that he's looked great whenever he's got out there, but he hasn't looked terrible. He's been okay. He's got a couple sacks in there. So I think, you know, as of right now, since they don't really have a strong side defensive end on the roster,

unless they're putting Justin Houston over there, I think, you know, they might have a role with him as kind of that backup there, maybe developing a little bit there. Or maybe they still want to try him at defensive tackle. I'm not too sure. You know, there's still a lot to kind of go about throughout this offseason here. Personally, for me, though, I see that he's played a lot of defensive end

for the Colts, and I think, you know, maybe that might be his best spot now considering the adjustment to defensive tackle or wherever they put him there just really hasn't been great. So, yeah, maybe the plan is for him to stay at defensive end, or maybe this really is a telltale sign that his days are done in Indy. I'm not too sure, but personally, just from what I see with it, and I see how much Lewis has played at defensive end compared to defensive tackle, I wouldn't be too worried about this move affecting him. Maybe a later move where they get like a defensive end in the draft or something like that could affect him.

But I'm not terribly concerned right now for his roster spot. Yeah, for those wondering, Taequann Lewis's stats over his first two years, in 17 games he's had 18 tackles, two sacks, nine quarterback hits on 563 total snaps there. So not much production. I know he's been injured in both those years. So I think it's a big upcoming offseason for Taekwon Lee. So he does stick around through the colds into the 2020 season.

But let's dive in now, Zach, to TJ Carey. I didn't honestly know much about him until I dove in a little bit myself yesterday and watched some YouTube clips and just some overall stories about TJ Carey. He's like a valuable depth piece. Maybe a guy who could be sort of that Kenny Moore insurance policy. If Kenny Moore does go down, he could play a nickel-corner role for you, if need be, a very good special teams player as well.

It seems like this move on a cheap one-year, around the same money as Sheldon Day was, I think one-year $1.5 million for TJ Carey. I think this move makes sense to add more depth in case an injury like we saw last year, Kenny Moore, happens. Yeah, yeah, you hit the nail on the head there. I mean, towards the end of the year last year, the Colts lost Kenny Moore. I think it was the last four or five games, and those last four or five games, the defense was completely lost. You know, I'm not saying it was entirely because Kenny Moore was out, but you know, when one of your best overall players goes down, it is tough to kind of compensate there, and TJ Carey's not a guy who's going to step in and and be at the same level as Kenny

Moore but he is a solid nickel corner he had a good season last year with the Browns and you know he's been around for a while I think he's 30 years old he played with the Raiders for a bit he kind of bounced around the league a little bit and given you know teams pretty solid play so it's nothing really to write homebound I think it's just a minimum deal anyway. But I think, you know, again, it's just that quality depth that the Colts lacked last year. You know, they had moments last year where their depth really wasn't great. And definitely down the stretch when they were trying to fight their way

into, like, a last playoff spot, their depth really was not helping them out. So I think getting a guy like T.J. Carey and, you know, also like Sheldon Day just shurs up those weak spots of depth that they had. So I like the signing of Carey. I think that, you know, having a veteran guy who can step in and play nickel and maybe even play a little bit outside if you need him to is solid. I mean, that's all you can really ask out of your fifth or sixth corner. Yeah, and speaking of the competition now at that cornerback position, Zach,

you add in, I think, with Xavier Rhodes, Kenny Moore, Rakia Sen, Marvell Tell, I think those four guys are locked for the roster spot next year. Add in TJ Carey, who can play special teams, which Quincy Wilson doesn't. I really have a hard time, Zach, seeing Quincy Wilson on this roster next year if they keep TJ Carey as an actual piece of next year's roster because if he's not going to play special teams, Zach,

and I can't imagine the Colts aren't going to draft a cornerback in this year's draft because Xavier Rhodes is on that one-year contract. Who knows what happens there? This could be a situation like we saw Hassan Ridgway last year, Zach, where Chris Bauer trades him, or two years ago, where he trades for a six-setth round pick on day three of the draft because I just don't see a fit for Quincy Wilson for playing time now. Yeah, yeah, the fit's so weird with him and he's had such a weird up and down career with the Colts so far where he's had moments of looking good and other moments where he's just

not really played and not look good at all so yeah it's very tough you know he obviously has the talent I don't know if it's like a mindset thing or what what it is for why he's not improving or why he's not getting on the field. But, yeah, special teams are huge. And if you're not going to play special teams, that's not how you get out there and impress coaches. I mean, we've seen guys over the course of their career with the Colts, you know, from Zach Paschal to Marvell Tell a little bit last year as well, that, you know, their special teams play earned them more snaps and gains. And, you know, quite frankly, I think Marvell Tell, for instance, I think he was out working Quincy Wilson in practice as well from all things that I've heard. So, you know, it's all

about work ethic and all about special teams play with this team. And that's how you get your snaps. And I guess that's just what's holding Quincy Wilson back. So, you know, maybe he doesn't have a long-term, like long-term fit with this team, but, you know, this offseason is going to be huge with him. Whether it's, you know, whether they actually have an offseason with workouts and training camp and such, he's really going to have to impress his coaching staff because, you know, he's probably on his last leg right now, and I don't know if that leads to a draft day trade

or a post-draft day trade or even getting cut. We'll have to see. But, yeah, his future is definitely in doubt with this team. Let's dive in now, Zach, into some draft talk here to close out the last few parts of the show. and I'm going to start off with a little curveball here because this isn't a topic many Coltsmen are discussing but the more I've looked at I know I've seen some draft prospect lists I forget who exactly does it on Twitter for us but I appreciate I think it's Brent Faitig who has this list that he puts out for the spreadsheets that

for who the Coltsmen are with the Combine Senior Bowl etc all in one place and I noticed on that list that guys like Clyde Edwards-Alaire, Cam Akers, Darrington Evans, day two early day three running back Zach and I posed this question on over on the Locked on Colts Twitter account and do you think there's a possibility Zach that the Colts are seriously considering maybe taking a guy on day two of the draft let's say maybe it's a Clyde Edwards-Alaire, a Cam Edwards, a Jonathan Taylor, a J.K. Dobbins, whoever you want to throw in that discussion there, Zach. I think it's actually a possibility because we saw Jim Mercer shoot down the extension talks with Marlon Mack right away when he was talking about it

at his press conference. If they don't want to pay Mack big money or Mack wants bigger money than they want, I think it's actually a possibility here that we're not talking about that maybe they do surprise everyone, take a running back early. Yeah. Yeah. They, they definitely could. A couple of things with that, you know, starting with Marlon Max extension, I don't know if they're really going to give them one unless it's, you know, for maybe like four or $5 million a year.

I don't see them really going much higher than that, which, you know, people don't really talk about enough with this Colts team is you can tell just from their tendencies and kind of what they do on the field is that they're very heavy analytics based team I mean from from from Frank Wright going forward on fourth down a lot you know that's a very analytics based thing from from quarterback sneaking almost every chance they can that's an analytics based thing I mean they have a ton of analytics kind of just you know put into their game plans. You can see it on film and you can see everything that they're really doing out there. And one of

the biggest fights that analytics type people when it comes to football are fighting is that you just don't pay running backs. And I think a lot of the NFL is kind of getting on that as well. So yeah, unless it's a very like team friendly deal, like maybe 4 million or $5 million a year over like two years. I don't really see Marlon Mack being back after the season, regardless of what he does. It's just kind of the nature of the game when it comes to running backs, when it comes to regards of like taking one pick 34, 44,

I do think that's a bit high mainly because we've seen kind of this regime, especially with Chris Ballard having quite a bit of success taking running backs on day three. You know, Marlon Mack was a fourth round pick. Naeem Hines was a fourth round pick. Jonathan Williams wasn't drafted by the team, but he was picked up on waivers. But, you know, he was a fifth round pick. Jordan Wilkins was a fifth round pick. So all these guys who have had kind of success in this Colts backfield have been those day three picks. So maybe guys like Clyde Edwards-Hilaire and Cam Akers,

I don't know if that's really guys are going to be targeting kind of on day two just because I don't think that's kind of in their plans that really take running backs that high. But I think it does maybe point to us taking running back maybe on day three or something like that to kind of groom and sit back there and maybe get some snaps this next year. And then also I do want to mention talking about – I think it's – you said it was – shoot, what was his name?

Was it Brett that does the spreadsheet? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, Brett does the spreadsheet. And I will say a lot of those things that he puts on there are very accurate. I try to feed him as much info as I can when it comes to all this stuff. And I'll give you guys even like a little funny thing. If you see something that says like sourced or something on there, it's probably me.

A lot of agents don't want me to disclose some stuff. So I try to say some stuff on there and give him some inside scoops and stuff like that. But his list is very accurate. I definitely highly recommend it. I think it's at fanofnuance on Twitter. Definitely check out his list there of Colts meetings and stuff. You know, I don't really think those meetings necessarily mean, like,

oh, they're going to draft this guy. But it's nice to see what positions they're looking at because that's typically where they like to go when it comes draft time. If there's one day three guy, just real quick on the running back, Zach, we're diving into some more draft talk here. It is a guy like Darrington Evans. I don't know if you dove in much to him from Appalachian State, kind of under the radar guy like Marlon Mack was when he came out of the draft

in 2017. Very comparable physical specimen-wise to a guy like Marlon Mack. 5'10", 203, ran an even faster 40-yard dash, 4'4", 1", 89 percentile per mock draft ball, very long arms. He's very explosive in the vertical and broad jump. He has the stats to prove it. Zach, I think it's an under the radar guy. If we're targeting like a fourth, fifth-round guy,

I think Darrington Evans makes a lot of sense. I don't know if you had the chance to watch him much yet, but what's your thoughts on a guy like him? Oh, yeah. No, I love Darrington Evans. He's actually my running back six right now, right behind those top five guys. And I'm really close with his agency and really, you know, I've interviewed him this offseason.

I've talked to him a couple times. Yeah, he's a really talented player. And he's just got a really good mindset about him. Yeah, I compared him to Marlon Mack. I think he's that type of guy who's kind of that day three steal. You know, he's like a Marlon Mack type. Raheem Mostert is a guy that he compared himself to when I was talking to him because he grew up around that guy and they're kind of good friends and such.

But he does compare his style to those type of players. You know, he's an athletic slasher who can kind of do a lot for your team in terms of special teams, catching the ball, hitting the hole, and getting big plays. So I don't know if he's going to be there in round four or five just because, you know, he had such a great combine and he had a really good final season as a junior. So I don't know if he's going to be there in round four or five just because you know he had such a great combine and he had a really good final season as a junior so I don't know if he's going to be there on day three but if he does yeah I would expect the Colts to be interested in him he's he's a really really

talented player we should hit on Zach just real quickly because this was in Frank Reich's little zoom press conference day with the local media talking about the offseason so far and this really spoke to me just I don't know if Frank Reich's dropping hints here just using Jacoby Brissett as a decoy I have no idea but he dropped the role that Jacoby Brissett could use in RPOs this year that Jacoby quote-unquote is tough to bring down and that he wants to maybe use Brissett for five to seven snaps a game that mobile to take advantage of his mobility so to say and when I when I read that I just don't believe that honestly exactly because Jacoby Brissett ran a five flat 40 he's 240 I just don't believe that honestly Zach because Jacob Berset ran a five flat 40 he's 240 pounds I don't see him in like a Taysom Hill type of role and if

they are kind of envisioning that type of role I keep coming back to a guy like Jalen Hurts because checks that leadership box I know he's more of a project a quarterback but he checks the leadership stuff he has the character they love and maybe he is a guy that could be using that Taysom Hill five-to-seven snap a game rule if they want to be. Yeah, so first addressing Taysom Hill compared to Chipotle Busset. I mean, we're talking about two completely different athletes here. Taysom Hill is a freak. I mean, he was, I think, 240 pounds or whatever at the combine or at his pro day, whatever it was back in the day.

And I think he ran like a 4-4-1, jumped almost 40 inches like Taysom Hill is an absolute freak and that's why he's able to play quarterback fullback tight end receiver running back he's able to do all this stuff because he's an actual absolute freak athlete uh Jacoby Brissett is like you said a five second flat 40 um yeah he's not even near the athlete Taysom Hill is. So even kind of inferring that or talking about them in the same sentence is kind of a bit absurd. I don't think that's very comparable whatsoever, unless you're playing Jacoby Reset in a true fullback position, I guess. I don't know.

But in regards to kind of that position play, the way that I kind of took that, especially when I kind of thought about it and realized it was, I think, honestly, I think the Colts are kind of just trying especially when I I kind of thought about it and realized it was I think honestly I think the Colts are kind of just trying to get the the value of Jacoby set up in case there's going to be like a trade uh come draft day you know if you tell teams oh Phillip Rose our guy Jacoby said we don't have much for him this year then you know teams are going to low ball you with offers but you say hey we need this winning backup we need this backup quarterback who

we still believe in heavily and we think he has great potential, and, oh, we even have play designs for him and stuff. We're going to give him plays this year. Then you can kind of drive that price up and try to ask for a little bit more in trade value. So I think that's really what it was. I don't think it's really anything to terribly look into.

I think it's just kind of a funny thing to laugh at, you know, when they're throwing Taysom Hill and Jacoby Brissett in the same sentence. But I think it's just more so just talking him up. So one, he doesn't feel slighted, which, you know, the Phillip Rivers deal would already probably make him feel a little bit slighted, just because he probably expects to be the starter. And two, I think it's just kind of to, you know, boost that trade value. You can't come up there and say, yeah, he's our backup. We don't really have many plans for him. You have to kind of act like he's still the greatest thing ever if you want to have that trade value for him.

Yeah, that's a very good point to bring up there. I honestly wasn't even thinking of that until you brought that up. And that could be very much in play. And we brought Quincy Wilson's draft day type of situation. Maybe Jacoby Brissett's the new Josh Rosen situation we saw last year in Arizona where at the last minute on day two, they traded away Rosen for as much value as they could in Miami. And they eventually drafted Andy Isabella out of UMass,

their wide receiver there. But really quickly, Zach, before I let you go, I think an interesting topic you should hit on is the wide receivers. And you hit on it last week with us here. But the specific role I think that they're looking for, I think it has to be like a big body wide out for a guy like Phillip Rivers, especially a guy who can win these contested catch situations. Who is a guy who can fill that Devin Funches role that we saw last year

where Bursette, at least in the first game, was really relying on Funches around the sticks. There is a big slot, a kind of guy who can win at those tough situations. Who kind of makes sense to you in that 34-44 range as sort of that big body wideout that Rivers always utilizes? Yeah, I have a couple guys, but before we get into that, the one thing I want to add to this kind of conversation, because it's a big thing that people are talking about, you know, draft this big receiver for Rivers because he loves, you know, he loved Mike Williams and he

loves these big receivers. But the one thing I'm kind of looking at when it comes to these receivers is why are we necessarily drafting for Phillip Rivers? You know, I know that this is kind of looking at when it comes to these receivers is why are we necessarily drafting for Phillip Rivers you know I know that this is kind of a one-year window that you kind of want to win but you obviously with the one-year deal and obviously with his age he's not the quarterback of the future so I don't think this going into this draft class I think it's just kind of a bit you know not smart I guess in a way to draft with Phillip Rivers as your only quarterback in mind you kind of have to draft with the future in mind as well. So I think like personally, if a smaller type receiver like KJ Hamler or Jalen Raker is the type of guy you like, and you know, he doesn't

really fit that big body receiver, you have to also keep in mind that you're not drafting just for Phillip Rivers, you're drafting for the guy after him as well. And getting more speedsters on the field that opens up the field a little bit more might be a better fit than getting a big guy out there uh but you know obviously you want to get that big guy as well for maybe it'd be a day three guy maybe it is at 34 44 and i think um at those two positions or at those two spots there uh like at pick 34 i think denzel mims is a great fit um he does have that speed and that ability as well as having that ability to go up and catch balls as well. And then I think at 44, maybe even 75, depending on how the draft falls, or maybe they can trade back a little bit from 44 and get this guy. But I really like Michael Pittman from

USC. I think he's just a really smooth player. You know, he moves really well on tape and at the combine, I think he ran a 4.5 and that with his size is excellent. he has the ability to go up there and catch almost everything that's thrown his way as well so I think those are going to be two guys to look for come draft day Denzel Mims and Michael Pittman are two types that I think the Colts will will really like to fit with Phillip Rivers yeah Pittman especially glad you brought him up there Zach he fits the character mold here because he was a team captain for USC last year, senior bowl success. He kind of checks all the boxes there as far as what the Colts really value in the pre-draft process. But before I let you go here, I want to hit on tight ends for a second

because that's the one need we have not seen the Colts address so far this year. I don't believe they trust Mike Cox just yet to be in that Eric Ebron role. He really hasn't shown much on the field. He hasn't shown much in the second half of last year. Of course, there's a quarterback there. But I think you have to add more upside to that position. Jack Doyle, as well, is 30 years old. He's entering into, I believe, probably the final last two or three years

of his career with the Colts. And it makes you wonder if they're going to target a guy like a Colt Comet on day two or maybe a guy on day three, like a Harrison Bryant from Florida Atlantic or something like that. Zach, what's your thoughts on this tight end class? And that's kind of the one knee I think it's missing for this close team alongside wide receiver on offense is that tight end too. Yeah, I would say from watching this tight end class,

especially when you factor in how they kind of tested the combine as well, I do think this is a very, very weak tight end class. And I don't think there's really many like pure receiving options in this class. I think there's a couple of decent guys like I think Dalton Keene from Virginia Tech on day three will have some good upside. I think Josiah DeGuara from Cincinnati might go like late day two. And I think he's got some good upside as well. But I don't really think any of those guys are like immediately coming in and replacing Eric Ebron and being that receiving tight end. I think the only guy, honestly, and he's not even fully a tight end

to pretty much every team, but I think Chase Claypool, with his size, ability, and kind of, like, you know, his size, ability, and also speed and athleticism, can really be that true receiving tight end, maybe like an Evan Ingram type for a team. But he's probably the only, like, true receiving tight end I see in this class. You know, like, guys like Hunter Bryant are just not that great athlete. Harrison Bryant from FAU is just not that great of an athlete. Adam Trotman, who's my tight end number one right now, I think he's more of a complete tight end rather than

being a true receiving threat. I think it's really going to be tough to replace that Eric Ebron role in this draft. Again, it's just a really weak tight end class. Unless again, like if a team sees Claypool as a tight end, we might see one go like early day two, but if they don't see him as a tight end, I think the earliest we'll see one is maybe a late day two, early day three. I really do think this is not a great tight end class.

And I think teams are kind of thinking that as well with how much money they threw at like Austin Hooper this offseason. He was a very decent tight end, not a great one by any means. But, yeah, overall I just don't think it's a great tight end class. I don't know if they're really going to come close to, you know, replacing Eric Ebron's effect on this offense this offseason. Before I let you go here as well, Zach, just to close things out, would it surprise you at all if the Colts went in that direction?

I think the more we get closer closer I think it's a good possibility they just go on on playmakers on day two of the draft say it's a Pittman at 34 and a Claypool at 44 I think it's a pretty good start if you're going to go day two in that scenario yeah yeah for sure I mean this offense definitely needs more work the the focus and free agency has really been the defense when it's come to you know adding Buckner Buckner, adding depth, adding, you know, a project former all-pro corner as well. You know, they've added a lot to this defense that was already pretty good into those last four games last year with Kenny Moore hurt and, you know, the team being out of the playoffs. So I think they've added a lot to that defense. And I think now you just have to kind of build around your veteran

quarterback. The offensive line is set. You just kind of need more weapons there on offense. So, you know, if they go a guy like Pittman or Mims or Rager, whoever at 34 and even go more offense with, you know, another receiver or a tight end at 44 or 75 or whatever, I think that's definitely necessary for this team. They definitely need as many weapons they can get on this offense because outside of a couple guys, maybe Hilton, Doyle, Paschal, I think the receiving game is definitely struggling right now. So they're definitely going to need some more weapons,

and I think this draft is the perfect place to get some. You guys can follow Zach over on Twitter, at ZachHicks2. You can read his work as well over on Stampede Blue and Cover One. Appreciate the time, man. Yeah, of course. Thanks for having me.