Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - PROSPECT SPOTLIGHT: Indianapolis Colts Could Be Enticed By Georgia DT Christen Miller in Round 2

Starting point is 00:00:00 Maybe it's time for the Colts to get one of these great Georgia defensive linemen. After all, their best players are in the twilights of their career. 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. All right, welcome to Locked on Colts on the Locked On Podcast Network. I am your host, Jake Arthur, the Indianapolis Colts beatwriter for Roundtable Sports. and today we are continuing our prospect spotlight series with a player who is not too commonly

Starting point is 00:00:41 linked to the Colts in mock drafts. I think it's because he is a position that's not necessarily one of great need for the Colts, and he's kind of a top 50 players. So people don't always project him to being available to the Colts, but we are going to Georgia and defensive tackle Kristen Miller. Now, the Colts have met with him or will be soon meeting with Miller, for an official pre-draft visit. And over these next, you know, the next week and a half or so,

Starting point is 00:01:11 Zach and I really want to zero in on players that the Colts have shown some level of interest in so that if they do hear their names called by the Colts, we're to kind of have a catalog of information to go to you guys here and say, here's what we know about this guy so far and joy. So we're going to go ahead and go with, again, a defensive tackle prospect. You don't hear a lot about that with the Colts super early. When I look at multi-round mock drafts, I see them usually sometime in day three. Zach and I have kind of broached the subject with the third round.

Starting point is 00:01:43 And his mock draft that we did on Monday, he had Dominique Orange in the third round. I've talked about Daryl Jackson, Jr. from Florida State a lot. But I think it's a very real possibility. If there's a defensive tackle that the Colts really like at 47 in the second round, that they will go in that direction, I do know they were open to the idea of, doing defensive tackle early last year. We'll talk about it more in depth of why it makes sense for the Colts, but just in the most general terms,

Starting point is 00:02:13 you look at DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart. They're both 32 years old, at a time, a lot of war, Colby Wooden, Derek Nottie, Jerry Tiller, all these guys are entering the final years of their contract. So the defensive tackle group for the Colts could look vastly different when we're looking at it this time next year. So it's been high time for them to get eventual starting level talent into this group.

Starting point is 00:02:41 And now I think it's paramount. I think it's very difficult for you to have to wait on it anymore because defensive tackle, it's not a position you just drop down on the field and they're really good to go from the start. Some of them are, but in the most common sense, these guys take at least a couple years to really start to scratch the surface. So I think it's time for the Colts to address it. Now let's look at Kristen Miller as a prospect. Like I mentioned, the Colts are already meeting with him. And I can see what they're interested in.

Starting point is 00:03:12 He's 6'4 or 321 pounds, 11-inch arms with 10-inch hands. 21 years old right now will be 22 when the season begins. So, you know, you're looking at a big guy. He's big, he's sturdy, he's tough to move. He's got plenty of power with good athleticism as well. Again, he's a young ascending player still. Like many Georgia defensive linemen, you are getting a guy with a special blend of, you know, size, power, athleticism. You are also getting a guy who has had a driving infraction back to 2023 speeding.

Starting point is 00:03:50 It seems like he has learned from that. He addressed that at the combine. But of course, had to get that out of the way. I mentioned he's an ascending player. He's been a starter for two and a half years. Like most nose tackles, he's not going to be a statistically gaudy player, 11 and a half tackles for loss and four sacks over the last three years. The good news is no real injuries to note, nothing that's costing him much time.

Starting point is 00:04:16 As a player, just right off the bat, I think he gets a decent snap off the ball. It's not like elite, but he is ready to go right away. I think he plays with pretty decent pad level. It's attention always is on the ball in the backfield. I think he's got really good hand usage. I mentioned he's got big hands, long arms, plenty of power in those hands. He just kind of sifts blockers away.

Starting point is 00:04:39 If you're not coming at him correct and you're coming with a weak block attempt, he's going to be able to kind of shoe you away. Those long arms also allow him to keep blockers away and at bay while he kind of sets guys up to stack and shed and fall down on the ball carrier. I like the way he kind of processes that. For a big guy, I think he's got pretty good lateral balance.

Starting point is 00:05:01 go from shooting to the outside to kind of stopping quickly and crashing down on the inside at the running lane changes. So I think he shows some good athleticism and balance there. He is not really known or probably going to be known as like a Supreme Interior Rusher. He did get taken off the field quite a bit on third downs there at Georgia. But he's got a pass rush win rate of 11.3%, which isn't bad. it's about top 20% or top 20 for draft eligible defensive tackles in this year's class. So he's in the upper portion of that group. Some ticks on him.

Starting point is 00:05:41 He could be a little slow identifying, you know, change of direction, plays, counter, option, play action. That stuff, he could just be a hair late to it. That stuff, I think, just you get more adept at it as you get more playing time and as you become a veteran. So that's not really something I'm overly concerned about. He does need to work on figuring out how to get out of double teams. Because if you get two guys on him, you're usually going to be able to kind of take him out. And, you know, you're working, if you're going to the Colts, you're working with guys like DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart.

Starting point is 00:06:15 You'll pretty much learn a master class in how to split double teams there. So in that instance, if he does come to the Colts, I am quite optimistic. He will be taught how to fix that issue. he does not always get into the backfield with a plan I have found. It's like a lot of times if he, you know, he's, he's pretty quick. You know, he's good, like I mentioned with his hands and his feet. If he gets into the backfield and just has like free rein at the running back or quarterback, sometimes he just, it's like he just shoots right by him.

Starting point is 00:06:48 So it's almost like maybe if he wasn't expecting to win so easily, that he just doesn't have an immediate reaction to what he's supposed to be doing. But we'll just call it over pursuit, I guess, sometimes when he gets into the backfield. So I guess just better attention to detail when he does kind of crack the line. As a player, when I've been looking around, I think the most common comparisons I see are to Kenny Clark, the former Green Bay Packers nose tackle, and Milton Williams, formerly of the Eagles, now with the New England Patriots. So we talked about Krista Miller, a good bit as a player and a prospect.

Starting point is 00:07:27 So how specifically does he fit with the Indianapolis Colts? We'll talk about that in just a moment. Workplace chaos, deadlines are stacking up. The inbox is overflowing. And that one position that you have to fill is just still sitting wide open. When the pressure's on and you need to write higher, this is a job for sponsored jobs. Indeed, sponsor jobs helps you reach the people who actually fit what you're looking for. skills, experience location, so you're not just hoping that the right candidate stumbles across your post.

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Starting point is 00:10:38 This isn't like the most sterling defensive tackle group we've seen in recent years. It's fine, it's solid, but it's not one that everyone's hanging a banner about necessarily. So you got your like Kalin McDonald's. Caleb Banks was a guy a lot of people liked up until the latest foot. issue. Kristen Miller is in most people's top three as well. So if you're going to get him, you're almost certainly going to have to go get him at pick 47. That's the Colts pick there in the second round. If you trade back, I don't know if you're going to be able to get him. I think he's pretty widely considered a top 50 player for most people. I think for the Colts, again,

Starting point is 00:11:17 he's ready to contribute right away as a run defender. He needs more time to develop as a pass rusher and just again learning how to disengage from those blocks, those double teams especially and becoming a reliable every down player. I think his timeline for what he needs to become a really solid player matches up well with the Colts. Right now you're not looking for anyone to start over to Forrest Buckner and Grover Stewart, but you do need guys to rotate in there more often. We already know they've gotten Colby Wooden at a time-a-outabwara is solid and he's getting better all the time. But you don't have much behind Grover Stewart.

Starting point is 00:11:53 You have Tim Smith and Derek Nottie. Smith was a six-round pick last year or a final round pick last year who spent his rookie season on the practice squad. And then Derek Nottie is just kind of around for vibes at this point. Not the most prolific player you're going to see. Even, you know, the chiefs kept resigning him. But ultimately, they let him walk this year. So you have very little death behind Grover Stewart.

Starting point is 00:12:18 And I think with the run, game taking priority again across the NFL lately. You're seeing more prevalence on the heavy personnel as well. Guys like Kristen Miller are critical. I think it also helps your linebackers, which the Colts the linebackers desperately need help as well. They're going to have more space to pursue and they don't get taken out as much by blockers because like right now I see Kristen Miller as a really solid run defender.

Starting point is 00:12:42 Again, he's got that good lateral mobility. He could eat up blocks as well. Like he may get stuck on double teams, but he's going to take a guy away from that offensive line. So again, you're going to have more room to pursue if you're the linebackers, if you're the slot defender. So a guy like that is really, really good. And while you're not counting on him to start necessarily over Grover Stewart, of course,

Starting point is 00:13:10 I think if he's able to win that competition to be like the next one tech up, then he's still going to play quite a bit. So I think he's going to be able to earn the playing time necessarily. to make him a good player. And, I mean, we'll see. You know, Marion Hobby, the Colts new D-Line coach, he had DJ Reader there with the Bengals. This could be a somewhat comparable player,

Starting point is 00:13:30 except for, I think Miller is probably a little more athletic, a little more explosive than Reader was. So I'm real interested to see if the Colts were able to get a guy like Miller, what that would look like. Is defensive tackle the Colts most urgent need? No, but I know that Chris Ballard would not hesitate one second to get an impactful interior defensive lineman if the opportunity presented itself. Again, like I mentioned, I know they were entertaining that early last year as well.

Starting point is 00:14:00 So this is a very real possibility, I think. Again, the Colts have met with Miller or they are meeting soon. I didn't really get specificity on when that meeting took place. But yeah, I think this does make sense. And especially if for some reason he were to tumble and he was there at 78, we're starting to slide like in the third round. He's a guy I think would be worth even trading up for. So,

Starting point is 00:14:25 Kristen Miller to the Colts, quite interesting again, but you're looking at a defense. We're just trying to add good players. So at a certain point, positional value or need, the value of need has to kind of go out the door when you're just looking to create a good defense. So Kristen Miller to the Colts,

Starting point is 00:14:43 I'm off for you guys in the comments. Let me know what you think. Thanks for tuning in today to lock on Colts on this prospect spotlight series. Zach and I will be with you again shortly for our regular episode. And then tonight, we will be with you with Derek Shultz and Alan Pinkett

Starting point is 00:14:57 for the Lock on Colts Squad Show. Make sure you that you subscribe to our show so that you get all of the latest episodes. If you don't already, follow at Locked on Colts at Jake Arthur, NFL, and at Zach Hicks 2 on social media. Don't forget to check out the Every Dare Club for ad-free audio episodes and access to a group chat with Zach, me,

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Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - PROSPECT SPOTLIGHT: Indianapolis Colts Could Be Enticed By Georgia DT Christen Miller in Round 2

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