BBS' line about Mike Pollak possibly being a bust got me thinking of draft history in relation to position, round, etc. I was struggling for a while to think what to write about, and that gave me an idea. I'm going to go through all of the Colts draft picks in a certain round, analyze, and rank. I'll start with the first round, which is a round we can all be happy with. Polian has taken five Pro Bowlers and one player who should have gotten in last year. This is the most successful round for Polian, and he had some tough decisions that ended up being 100% perfect. Manning, James, Wayne and a bunch of more Colts stars.
1998: Peyton Manning/QB/Tennessee
College: Manning went to Tennessee over his father's school Ole Miss. At Tennessee, Manning was one of the top QBs in college football for his 4 years. He started as a third stringer but worked his way up because of injury. Manning was a serious Heisman contender in his sophomore, junior and senior year, but he never got the trophy. He was closest in 1997 when wide receiver/cornerback from Michigan Charles Woodson won the award. Manning won 39 of his 45 college starts, the SEC record for career wins. However, he never beat Steve Spurrier and Florida, which gave the media the stupid "He can't win in big games" crap we still hear today.
One interesting thing about his college career is that he completed his degree after 3 years but returned for his senior season. If Peyton made the choice that almost every other athlete would make, he would be playing for the Rams.
Draft: The Colts took the legacy Manning over the young star Ryan Leaf. Manning was considered the safer pick, but Leaf was said to have the higher ceiling. And that seems pretty accurate to this day. As we know, besides all of those recent Patriots games, all those regular season game, and the 2007 playoffs, he can't win in big games. And Ryan Leaf is going to jail for drugs. Yep, that's a pretty high ceiling he reached.
Today: Peyton Manning needs just one more ring to cement himself as the greatest quarterback to ever play. Period. He will have only one less ring than Tom Brady and the Patriots who knowingly cheated for their rings and one more than Brett Favre, whose records Peyton will break in a couple of years. He will have multiple championships, a record amount of MVPs and all of the major QB records.
Awards & Records
3-time NFL MVP (2003, 2004, 2008)
9-time Pro Bowler (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
4-time 1st team All-Pro (2003, 2004, 2005, 2008)
3-time 2nd team All-Pro (1999, 2000, 2006)
1998 All-Rookie 1st Team
2004 Offensive POY
2005 Pro Bowl MVP
2007 Super Bowl MVP
Most seasons with 4000+ passing yards (9)
Most consecutive seasons with 25+ passing touchdowns (11, current streak)
Most games with a perfect passer rating (4)
Highest single season passer rating (121.1, 2004)
Most consecutive games with 4+ passing touchdowns (5, 2004)
Most seasons with 12+ regular season wins as a starter (7)
Review: I don't even need to look at who else was taken in this draft. It's no question that this was the right pick. He's the best first round pick in Colts history by far. Look at those records and awards. I only included the notable/interesting ones. It's amazing that he has never thrown less than 25 TDs in a season andhad five straight games with4 or more passing touchdowns. He's a legend for sure.
1999: Edgerrin James/RB/Miami (Fla.)
College: Miami was making its name as today's Running Back U, and James was one of the best in school history. Before Willis McGahee's stupendous career, James was the leading rusher in school history. However, James was overshadowed by Ricky Williams at Texas.
Draft: James was not a popular pick to say the least. Most people expected the Colts to take Ricky Williams, who went on to get suspended multiple times for marijuana a briefly retired and went the Beatles route by going to Asia and working in hollistic healing. James proved to be the better pick.
Today: After 10 years, James is unemployed but not retired. He is the leading rusher in Colts history with 9,226 yards and that record probably won't be broken any time soon. The Colts are pretty crowded at running back, but I'm sure if Brown and maybe Hart weren't there James would be back in speed blue. He should retire right now andenter the Hall of Fame in a few years, but he will sign with someone like Philly and make some money there. James is an all-time great at running back, and his first and second year were the best start for a career for any running back. Ever. If it weren't for his knee injury in 2001, he would be on his way to breaking Emmitt Smith's rushing record.
Awards & Records
1999 NFL Offensive ROY
4-time Pro Bowler (1999, 2000, 2004, 2005)
1999 1st team All-Pro
Leading active rusher (12,121 yards)
Leading rusher in Colts history (9,226 yards)
Leader in yards from scrimmage per game (109.7 per game)
Review: Even though other Pro Bowlers like Torry Holt, Champ Bailey andAntoine Winfield went after him, this was a great pick. Peyton wouldn't have been Peyton without a great ground game ran by Edgerrin James. I wish Edge the best and I wish they would have kept #32 in the closet until James retired so he could be properly immortalized.
2000: Rob Morris/LB/BYU
College: Rob Morris went to BYU, and like most students there, he went on a mission trip. That's why he was 25 in his rookie year. At BYU, Morris was a star. He was a first team All-American and semifinalist for the Butkus Award, the award given to the top linebacker in the country.
Draft: Morris was one of the top players in college football, and he came from a fairly prestigious school, but making the transition from a mid-major to the pros at his age was a main topic of interest.
Today: Morris, due to his age and injury problems, is out of the league after a strong but less than notable career. I am not going to do an Awards & Records section for him because, frankly, he didn't earn any. He was a 0-time Pro Bowler, 0-time All-Pro and didn't break any records. His 2000 and 2001 seasons with 100+ tackles were his highlight until 2006, when he was a leader on the stellar playoff defense. That's what he is most appreciated for.
Review: Morris ended up being a fan favorite but never really matched the success of 2000 and2001 until the Super Bowl run. One has to look at the next linebacker taken, Pro Bowler Keith Bulluck who would have been a great pick for the Colts. The problem is, unlike Morris, Bulluck is an idiot who was involved in the Terrible Towel fiasco last year. However, any question of the Morris pick is erased by the solid 2nd round pick of Marcus Washington, who still may be the best linebacker in the Polian-era alongside Cato June and Gary Brackett.
2001: Reggie Wayne/WR/Miami
College: Wayne played in one of the greatest wide receiver corps in college football history with Santana Moss and Andre Johnson, andhe was the standout. He holds the school record for receptions with 173 andis one of three Miami receivers with20 or more touchdown receptions. Those are extremely notable with the amazing receivers that have been to Miami. This is the fourthstraight year so far that the Colts took a college star in the first round.
Draft: Wayne was taken at 31 after a swap of picks with the Super Bowl loser New York Giants. Wayne was a very surprising pick. As is the case today, everyone expected the Colts to go defense, especially with The Triplets on offense. Wayne shocked and confused most people. Defensive back was a huge need going into the 2001 draft, so most people thought someone like Will Allen, Jamar Fletcher or Derrick Gibson, but the trade down was perfect. All of the defensive backs were drafted and that left Reggie, and it gave the Colts a third and sixth rounder.
Today: Wayne is one of the top wide receivers in the league. Only a handful have had more success than Wayne, and those guys do not have the Super Bowl ring Wayne does. Wayne has been posting yearly 1,000 yard receiving seasons since 2004 and has had two years with 10 or more touchdowns.
Awards and Records
3-time Pro Bowler (2006, 2007, 2008)
14th in active receiving yards (8129 yards)
12th in active receiving touchdowns (53)
Review: Yeah, I'd say this was a great pick. He is now the undisputed number one receiver with Marvin gone. Other Pro Bowl wide receivers taken after Wayne are Chad Ochocinco, Steve Smith and TJ Houshmandzadeh. The 2001 draft is one of the best drafts in recent history, but I wouldn't want anyone besides Wayne, not even Houshmandzadeh and Ochocinco.
2002: Dwight Freeney/DE/Syracuse
College: Freeney played for Marvin Harrison's alma mater Syracuse, and he is one of the best defensive ends in college football history. He had an amazing 17.5 sacks in his senior year, and he even finished 9th in Heisman Trophy voting in 2001.
Draft: The Colts had the unusually high pick of 11 due to the 6-10, Edge-less season. This was the first defensive lineman first round pick for the Colts since 1995 when they took defensive tackle Ellis Johnson. Freeney was another college star taken by the Colts, a trend that is being rejuvenated.
Today: Freeney is the best 4-3 pass rusher in the NFL today. His spin move is lethal and nearly unblockable. His favorite target was Jonathan Ogden, who retired presumably because of Freeney's relentless beating he reigned down on Ogden. Freeney consistently was at a point in his career for 2006 and 2007 when he was double or triple teamed every pass play and missed 7 games in 2007, but the emergence of Robert Mathis has given Freeney some room to dominate again.
Awards & Records
4-time Pro Bowler (2003, 2004, 2005, 2008)
2-time 1st team All-Pro (2004, 2005)
Lead the league in sacks in 2004
70.5 sacks, 13th active
Review: No one would take back this pick. Freeney is the most dominant 4-3 pass rusher. 3-4 pass rushing inflates sacks with the advantage of standing up, and that overshadows Freeney's amazing performance as a 4-3 pass rusher whose numbers are comparable to some of the top 3-4 pass rushers. Ed Reed, Albert Haynesworth and Lito Sheppard were other notable first round picks after Freeney.
2003: Dallas Clark/TE/Iowa
College: Our great tight end was not a tight end at his first year in college. He played special teams as a linebacker for his redshirt freshman year. It was during the offseason that the Hawkeyes staff decided to move Clark to tight end. Over the next two years, Clark became one of the top tight ends in college football. In 2002, his senior year, he had 742 yards, 2 touchdowns and won the John Mackey Award, the award named after a Colts great that is given to the top tight end in college football. He also was a first team All-American. He left Iowa with a year of eligibility left.
Draft: The Colts had Marcus Pollard, a solid tight end who was a fan favorite as a Colt, but the loss of Ken Dilger left the second tight end spot open. As we all know, Moore loves to use the 2 tight end set, but using a first rounder was a bit of a surprise. We saw a similar scenario going into the 2008 draft when Ben Utecht went to Cincy, but they didn't take a tight end until the fourth. Clark did show the current trend of Polian and the Colts favoring offense over defense in the first round.
Today: Clark is one of the best tight ends in the league and is working his way to being the best tight end in Colts history. Last season he broke John Mackey's record for most receiving yards in a season by a tight end with 848. He should have been an All-Star last season but a combination of the fan vote and the voting ending way too early cost him a trip. Clark is the second best receiver on the team and will have to be relied on more with the slot receiver being an inexperienced player.
Awards & Records
Colts record holder for season receiving yards in a season for a tight end (848 yards)
No other records or awards
Review: Great pick. Clark is a premier tight end and has become a touchdown threat, which is huge for the team. 17 receiving touchdowns over the past two years have made him a fantasy favorite as well as a top tight end. He broke his leg in his rookie year, but he has improved every year. Some Pro Bowlers taken soon after Clark are Larry Johnson, Nnamdi Asomugha, Rashean Mathis and Anquan Boldin. This has been a great draft, and the Colts got a great player.
2004: No first round pick
The Colts had the 28th pick in the 2004 pick but traded down. The Falcons took Michael Jenkins, the wide receiver out of Ohio State. The Colts then traded down again from 38 to 48. They swapped picks with the Steelers. The Steelers took the cornerback Ricardo Colclough. The Colts took some guy named Bob Sanders with the 48th pick. I don't know what he's up to now. The Colts also got Gilbert Gardner, Kendyll Pope and Jason David from those trades.
2005: Marlin Jackson/CB/Michigan
College: Jackson is one of the greatest corners in Michigan history. He was a freshman All-American, a second team All-American as a sophomore and a first team All-American as a senior. So in his three years as a corner (he was moved to safety for his junior year), he made some sort of All-American team. The most amazing fact is that for his senior year, teams only threw his way around 13 percent of the time. That shows how dominant he was.
Draft: The 2005 draft was one of the weirdest in Colts history because of the focus on defense. 4 of the first 5 picks were of defensive players. The first offensive skill position player taken was Anthony Davis in the seventh. Coincidently, this was not a good draft with only 4 of the players are still on the team. However, Jackson was considered a good pick at the time.
Today: Jackson, when healthy, is part of the best secondary in football. The 1st and 2nd round picks Jackson and Kelvin Hayden are perfect for the Cover-2 where their size and decent speed are just what the team needs. Jackson is my ideal cornerback. He may not get a lot of interceptions (3 regular season picks in 4 years), but in 2007 and 2008 he had a combined 169 tackles, and in just 7 games he had 47 tackles last year. That shows how good of a tackler he is, something his replacement Tim Jennings was not.
Awards & Records
"Brady sets up, sets up, throws across the middle.... INTERCEPTION!!! MARLIN JACKSON!! MARLIN'S GOT IT!! WE'RE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!"
Review
Even though he doesn't get a lot of interceptions, I am a big fan of Marlin Jackson. His size and tackling makes him a great player to have on the outside, especially when the run defense is the weakness of the team. Marlin is probably gone after this season, but his interception in the AFC Championship Game is one of the all-time greatest Colts moments.
2006: Joseph Addai/RB/LSU
College: Addai breaks the trend of stars being taken in the first round. Addai was good, especially in his final year at LSU, but he was in a two-back system and never had over 1,000 yards. However, Addai had an amazing Combine and rose up the draft boards.
Draft: From the beginning I expected Joseph Addai to be the pick. Laurence Maroney probably would have been the pick if he was left, but thankfully the Patriots took Maroney and he ended up being a major bust. Addai was taken at 29th in the running back-loaded draft where he was the 4th running back taken (Reggie Bush, Laurence Maroney and DeAngelo Williams were taken before Addai).
Today: Addai is a fan favorite completely loved by all. Kind of. There are the few that want his head on a platter and are planning on running him out of town. Those people favored Dom Rhodes over Addai last year even though Rhodes had the same yards per carry average. Addai has made a Pro Bowl and has had 2 1,000 yard seasons. He has been very injury-prone and that is one of the reasons why he didn't have 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, which he is definitely capable of. However, in Colts land you have one bad injury year and you are a pathetic excuse for a running back. If only we had ran that Bob Sanders guy out of town with his injuries...
Awards & Records
NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month (November 2006)
1 time Pro Bowl selection (2007)
Only player in NFL history to have 1,000+ rushing yards without starting a single game
Most Irrationally Hated Player in History
Review: I think Addai is still a great running back. It will be interesting to see how his knee responds to surgery and if it will return him to 2006 form. I expect him and Donald Brown to make up one of the best combos in football. The 2006 Rhodes-Addai one was so great, and an experienced Addai and a talented Brown should be even better.
2007: Anthony Gonzalez/WR/Ohio State
College: Gonzalez played with other future NFLers in Santonio Holmes, Ted Ginn Jr., Brian Robiskie, Brian Hartline, and our own Roy Hall. Gonzalez was a great player in 2006, the first year the Buckeyes decided to ruin the national championship game. He was a great combination of a deep threat and a possession receiver. He was often overshadowed by Ted Ginn, but I remember him clearly. He was fantastic and did not get the recognition for his work.
Draft: The Colts were coming off of an amazing Super Bowl run, but none of us forgot the pathetic run defense during the season. Although Brandon Stokley was leaving, I was expecting a defensive player like Paul Pozluzsny. However, the Colts took Anthony Gonzalez in the first, continuing the now unignorable trend.
Today: Anthony Gonzalez is now the number two receiver. The Colts and Marvin Harrison sadly parted ways and now Gonzalez has to replace the future Hall of Famer. Gonzalez has had two great years, where in just 11 starts he has 1240 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns. Gonzalez will get more looks this year now that Marvin is gone, and Peyton and he have a great connection.
Awards & Records
No notable achievements...yet
Review: I am a big fan of Gonzalez. His yards per catch average of 13.2. He is a good possession receiver who can go deep. He is tough and has good size. I don't think Gonzalez will ever be a consistent Pro Bowler, but I think he could have multiple years of 1,000 receiving yards and will be a main part of a future Super Bowl Colts team.
2008: No first round pick
The Colts traded their first round pick in 2008 to the 49ers for the 42nd pick in the 2007 draft, which with the Colts took Tony Ugoh.
2009: Donald Brown/RB/UConn
College: Brown's 2008 season is one of the best and most underrated in college football history. Brown had 2,083 rushing yards, only one of 14 players to have more than 2,000 yards in a season. His bowl performance against Buffalo was unbelievable. He had 208 yards in the first half and completely carried the team while finishing with 261 rushing yards. It was right after the game that he decided to skip his last year of eligibility.
Draft: I remember it like it was yesterday. The anticipation was crazy for me. I was all prepared for Peria Jerry to be the Colts first rounder, but the Falcons took him before the Colts got on the clock. It seems that the Colts lucked out as Jerry has already gotten hurt. I know most people around Stampede Blue was expecting Ziggy Hood, the defensive tackle from Mizzou to be the pick now that Jerry is gone, but history repeated itself. The Colts took the offensive player over the defensive tackle.
Review: No one is complaining about this pick. Everyone expects great things from Brown, and he will revitalize the running game. Expect him to get around 12 carries a game and have a major impact right away.
So now with all of the first rounders being scouted and reported on, I am now ready to rank them. I am leaving off Brown and Gonzalez due to a lack of experience. I know this could cause a little controversy, but I am sure that it is accurate.
8. Rob Morris
7. Joseph Addai
6. Marlin Jackson
5. Dallas Clark
4. Dwight Freeney
3. Edgerrin James
2. Reggie Wayne
1. Peyton Manning
I expect to see Addai, Brown and Gonzalez climb this and hopefully jump Edgerrin one day.