Player Profile: Colts Defensive Tackle Denico Autry

Measurables:

Height: 6’5” | Weight: 270 lbs | Age: 27 | Experience: 5 Years
40 Yard Dash: 5.07 | 10 Yard Split: 1.75 | Bench Reps: 14 | Vertical Jump: 29 ½
Broad Jump: 09’07” | 20 Yard Shuttle: 4.42 | 3-Cone Drill: 7.37

College: Mississippi State / East Mississippi Community College

Professional Transactions:

Signed by the Colts as an unrestricted free agent on March 15, 2018.
Signed to Oakland active roster on October 25, 2014.
Signed by Oakland as an undrafted free agent on May 20, 2014.

Contract Terms: 3-year, $17.8M with $6.5M guaranteed (first-year)

NFL Career Stats:

56 Games | 18 Starts | 100 Tackles | 10.5 Sacks | 24 TFL | 21 Quarterback Hits
2 Fumble Recoveries | 1 Safety | 12 Passes Defensed | 6 Blocked Kicks (at least 1 per year)

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FORMER COACHES AND TEAMMATES ON AUTRY:

One thing that is clear about Denico Autry is that he has come from humble beginnings in football to make his way onto the field as a regular contributor in the NFL. This kind of effort and the attitude it has taken to get him where he is now has been noted by former coaches and teammates.

Autry’s former defensive line coach in Oakland said that “he has the heart of a lion.”

Former teammate Mario Edwards also spoke very highly of his teammate: “It’s kind of one of those guys (Autry) that just brings their lunch pail to work every day; don’t ask any questions, whatever you need to get done, it gets done.”

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RAIDERS FANS AFTER AUTRY SIGNED WITH THE COLTS:

Interesting considering he was Raiders most disruptive interior defensive lineman

Surprised the Raiders resigned Justin Ellis instead of Autry.

Wanted to keep him.

Some sacks, lots of batted passes and a few blocked kicks.

I’m bummed.

I really like Autry. I thought he could be one of the best ends in football with the right COACHES! This is the Del Rio/Norton effect. We could lose some potentially good players because of those two.

chump change - we could have **easily** matched and beaten that contract…

he’s one of the best DL we have and we’re letting him walk for this??

instead we’re throwing money at a 33 year old Jordy Nelson??? sheeez…

Wow, looks like a lot of incentives

Looking at base salaries and the amount of guaranteed money. I wanted the Raiders to re-sign him, he was our most disruptive interior lineman.

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AUTRY’S IMPACT ON THE FIELD -- FILM REVIEW

Autry lines up all over the line and is effective from each spot. He is not particularly known to be a finisher but is able to shoot gaps and disrupt the pocket and blow up the run game as well, as evidenced by the following:

Autry fits in with what new Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus is most likely going to run in Indianapolis. He fits the bill as a chess piece in a one-gap scheme, particularly as a penetrating 3-tech defensive tackle on run downs. He could also be used as a disruptive edge presence at defensive end.

One of Autry’s best traits is the use of his length to bat passes at the line of scrimmage. He keeps his eyes up while he hand fights with offensive linemen and can clog up passing lanes.

This video shows many of Autry’s best attributes at work. This shows how effective he is when he one-gaps and creates penetration. He does an excellent job of winning one-on-one battles throughout and a reasonably good job of dispatching double teams as well. What could be most important from this video is that it shows Autry is more than just a penetrating 3-technique prospect who was brought in to generate pressure up the middle. He can be a 3-down interior defender who can stop the run and get after the quarterback.

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Overall, it seems that Autry is a hard-nosed player that has improved every year he has been in the league. He finished the 2017 season with the Raiders as third in sacks, third in tackles for a loss, tied for second in passed defensed, and played in 57% of Oakland’s defensive snaps. If his current trajectory continues, he could be a very productive defensive lineman on another excellent contract.

If he fails to work out in a system that seems to play to his strengths, the team is well positioned to move on without a single dollar guaranteed after the 2018 season. It’s hard to see how this isn’t a win-win situation for Colts.

CREDIT: A lot of information here is from Faraz Majid’s story from March 15, 2018 “Who is New Colts DL Denico Autry?”