Getting to Know Colts Rookie Offensive Lineman Denzelle Good

When the Indianapolis Colts drafted offensive lineman Denzelle Good out of Mars Hill, it caught everyone by surprise.  NFL Network's Mike Mayock didn't know who he was.  Other NFL Network analysts acted like they did but embarrassingly had the wrong school.  And there were a number of differing variations on how to spell his name.  No one really knew much about him, but the Colts liked him enough to make him their final draft choice before moving on to signing undrafted free agents.

The Colts are holding rookie mini-camp this weekend, and the 6-5, 339 pound offensive tackle is certainly a part of it as he competes, looking to impress the coaching staff and get some of the fundamentals and basics down.  In addition, it also provides a nice time for us to learn more about the prospect.

"[Good is] a big man," head coach Chuck Pagano said on Friday.  "An athletic guy.  I'm not going to give you his numbers, measurables, you guys probably know those, but he doesn't look it.  He moves around really well, he's light on his feet.  We went and worked him out, Frank Giufre, as Ryan (Grigson) talked about in the presser, went and worked him out late in the process and put him through a grinding workout and at the end of it he seamlessly went up and dunked a basketball twice.  The guy has got a chance.  Right now they all do, but he's a big, athletic man that can move."

One of the top recruits in the state of South Carolina in 2009, Good initially attended North Carolina State but didn't see action in a game in 2010.  He didn't play football at all in 2011 and wound up at Mars Hill, a small school in North Carolina.  There, Good excelled, starting 31 games in three years and not allowing a single sack during his time at the school.  He was a two-time First Team All-South Atlantic Conference selection and did well enough to draw the attention of some scouts.  He participated in the 2015 Super Regional Combine in both Baltimore and Atlanta, and it was there that the Colts noticed him and became interested.

"Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach) did an outstanding job," Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said a week ago at his post-draft press conference.  "He went out there [to Mars Hill] and worked [Good] out, flew out there, put him through a really hard work out.  Right after the workout, the kid, he dunked effortlessly and really got pretty high above the rim for a 340-pound cat.  His movement skills, he has all the size.  He actually has a 30 Wonderlic score, which is very impressive.  That's Stanford-type stuff.  There's a lot there to work with.  That's a pretty nice lump of clay for our coaches work with.

"Frank really liked the kid and liked the workout, and again, the film, he had moments of dominance at the Division II level.  Throughout the league, there's been some pretty darn good Division II linemen going back to, I don't want to say any names because then people say, ‘You're comparing him to this guy.'  He's in the category of some of those D-II guys that I've done who've been successful in the league, but it's up to him."

Despite the Colts' interest in him, Good said that he went into the draft not expecting to be selected.  He was at home with his family having a cookout when his name was called on the second-to-last pick of the draft.  "Everybody in the house went crazy," he recalled on Friday about being drafted.

Now, he's a member of the Colts and is looking to stick around and earn a spot on the team.  As a seventh-round draft pick out of a small school he faces an uphill battle, but he's just thankful for the chance to compete.

"I'm just glad for this opportunity to be here," Good said on Friday.  "I just want to show them everything I got.  Just put on for my town and my family and everything.  I'm the first to ever make it this far.  It's a big opportunity, and I'm grateful to have it."