Stampede Blue’s Mock Draft Face Off

It’s Elliot vs Reed in Stampede Blue’s Mock Draft Face Off

By Elliot Denton-Singh and Stephen Reed Apr 18, 2019, 12:00pm EDT

In this series, we will look at mocking viable and realistic options to the Colts each week, and analyzing each pick in how they fit the Colts.

Welcome to Mock Draft Face Off with Elliot and Stephen! The offseason is officially here and the NFL draft is arguably the league’s biggest offseason event. Each week we will both be mocking draft picks to the Colts and analyzing them. We will now be mocking the first four rounds of picks by the Colts, then building up to include the other rounds and picks as we get closer to the draft.

So let’s get Mock Drafting!

Elliot’s Round 1 Pick 26

NCAA Football: Outback Bowl-Mississippi State vs Iowa

Jeffery Simmons - DL - Mississippi St

Drafting Jeffery Simmons at pick 26 overall is a steal. Yes he’s coming off an ACL injury and has an off field issue but he’s a top 15 talent and a top 5 interior defensive lineman in this years draft. He wreaks havoc along the defensive line whether it be against the run, racking up tackles for a loss, or against the pass, getting sacks. He has rare size, power and movement skills, has the quick twitch off the snap that Chris Ballard covets in defensive linemen and wins in different ways.

Elliot’s Round 2 Pick 34

NCAA Football: Peach Bowl-Florida vs Michigan

Chauncey Gardner-Johnson - S - Florida

After grabbing Simmons, the Colts draft safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. Gardner-Johnson is a top 3 safety in this class and is exactly the versatile type of safety the Colts want and need. He is able to blitz, drop deep in cover 1, play nickel corner and match up against receivers and tight ends. Pairing Gardner-Johnson with Malik Hooker shore up the back end of the defense for a long time. Garnder-Johnson also met with the team for an official visit so the interest is clearly there.

Elliot’s Round 2 Pick 59

NCAA Football: North Carolina State at Louisville

Kelvin Harmon - WR - NC State

The Colts now switch their attention to the offensive side of the ball by selecting wide receiver Kelvin Harmon. Harmon has the size (6’2” 221lbs), catch radius and ball skills to be a big factor in the Colts offense. Harmon could be what the Colts need to help eleviate the pressure on T.Y. Hilton and help take the offense to the next level. Imagine a receiver corps of Hilton, Funchess, Harmon and Cain? Would be pretty nice.

Elliot’s Round 3 Pick 89

NCAA Football: Southern Methodist at Central Florida

Trysten Hill - DL - Central Florida

While the Colts drafted Simmons in round 1, he won’t be able to contribute straight away due to his February ACL injury. The Colts grab another interior defensive lineman in Trysten Hill. Hill is a great talent and that is evident on tape by how he wins so often against offensive linemen by shooting gaps in both the run and pass game. Again Hill has that quick first step that Ballard loves so much. His maturity and off field problems are why he slides to the 3rd round though.

Elliot’s Round 4 Pick 129

Anthony Nelson - EDGE - Iowa

The Colts stay on the defensive side of the ball but target the edge this time in Anthony Nelson. Nelson is a defensive end with excellent length, great off the snap burst, versatility and ability to win in a variety of different ways. Nelson has the ability to line up all over the defensive line and still win. At 6’7” and 271lbs, Nelson is exactly the type of defensive lineman and edge rusher Ballard covets.

Elliot’s Round 4 Pick 135

Isaiah Johnson - CB - Houston

The Colts need to add depth at talent at the cornerback position. Isaiah Johnson has the size and ball skills that Ballard loves. A former wide receiver, he could be exactly what the Colts need to line up across the way from Pierre Desir. He would likely be a developmental corner to start, as he’s only had two years at the position, but could become a more refined corner that is capable of starting down the line.

Reed’s Analysis

I love the Simmons pick. Oddly enough, I also made Simmons my pick at 26. He’s a perfect fit for what the Colts do on the field. However, the biggest concern is the off-field incident prior to enrolling at Mississippi State. If Chris Ballard believes Simmons deserves a second chance, I could see this being the pick.

Gardner-Johnson is a versatile, do-everything safety. He improved immensely as a tackler over the last few seasons at Florida, which makes him an ideal fit for when the Colts go with their three safety formations.

Kelvin Harmon will be a sneaky good NFL WR. He’s got excellent hands and is a technically savvy route runner. He knows how to get open and can sit in the right place in zone coverage. Harmon will drop in the draft due to poor testing times but everyone knew he would not test well. When you watch his film, you see a solid receiver that will help you move the chains.

Another DL pick with Trysten Hill. I dig it. After surprisingly declaring for the NFL draft, Hill has shot up draft boards recently after people have gotten a chance to see more tape. The third round might be a little rich for me as Hill has some maturity concerns and might need to play the same position as Simmons in the NFL, as a 3-technique DT.

Anthony Nelson is another sneaky selection by Elliot. Nelson is an all-in, hard working kind of player. His motor never quits. He’s got ideal length and burst off the line of scrimmage. Nelson does need to improve his play at the point of attack so he might be limited early on in his career until he gets that issue fixed.

This last pick is about the only one I’m not as high on. Isaiah Johnson seems more like a press-man corner to me. For a former WR, his ball skills are questionable. He’s also not a consistent tackler. However, Johnson has such an intriguing set of traits that taking a fourth round flyer on him is understandable. He’s also a player who could make an immediate contribution on special teams. With the proper coaching, Johnson could develop quickly and prove me wrong.

Reed’s Round 1 Pick 26

Jeffery Simmons - DL - Mississippi State

It looks more and more likely that Simmons, a top 10 player in this draft, could fall to the Colts at 26 due to his off-field concerns and ACL injury. Yes, he may miss a portion of the 2019 season. However, once healthy, he has incredible potential and could easily be an instant impact player. As Elliot said, Simmons at 26 would be a steal.

Reed’s Round 2 Pick 34

AJ Brown - WR - Ole Miss

AJ Brown is one of the most complete WRs in this draft. He’s got the ability to play any WR position. He excelled in the slot at Ole Miss but has the potential to be an outside WR in the NFL. Adding Brown will be a valuable addition for Andrew Luck and the Colts offense.

Reed’s Round 2 Pick 59

Taylor Rapp - SS - Washington

One of the more surprising outcomes of the pre-draft process was Taylor Rapp running such a disappointing 40 time. He plays much faster than that. He’s a perfect complement to Malik Hooker as Rapp can play the box safety position and cover TEs.

Reed’s Round 3 Pick 89

Charles Omenihu - Edge - Texas

Charles Omenihu has been linked to the Colts for quite some time now. He’s a solid rotational defensive lineman who can play both the DE position and slide down to the DT position on passing downs. Chris Ballard loves these types of versatile players.

Reed’s Round 4 Pick 129

Sean Bunting - CB - Central Michigan

The Colts need to get some depth at the corner position. Enter Sean Bunting. He’s a mid round option who excels in zone coverage and has solid ball skills. He’s big, physical and doesn’t mind making the tackle. Bunting would be an ideal fit for the Colts defensive system.

Reed’s Round 4 Pick 135

Renell Wren - DL - Arizona State

Even though the DL position was addressed with Simmons, Renell Wren provides a different skill set and fills the hole left by Al Woods. Wren has great penetration skills and can collapse the pocket from the NT position. His burst at the snap will give interior offensive lineman headaches. Wren needs some coaching but could be another steal.

Elliot’s Analysis

Simmons is a top 15 talent on the field and is a gap shooting defensive lineman who wreaks havoc. His off the field stuff is an issue and it really is up in the air if Chris Ballard would accept it or not. Colts did meet with Simmons at his pro day and he also had an official visit with the team.

AJ Brown is at the top of my list for wide receivers to be drafted by the Colts. He reminds me of Juju Smith-Schuster is that he will go under the radar a bit in the draft but will ball out in the league. He’s a refined route runner with strong hands who will contribute in the Colts offense straight away. Brown also met the Colts for a formal meeting at the combine.

Reed’s pick is similar to my pick at safety in that they both are what the Colts need at the position. Rapp is a mix of strong and free in that he can come down in the run and play that typical strong safety position and drop back in two high safety look. This is exactly what the Colts need in a safety.

Omenihu is in the mold of how Ballard likes in that he can play edge but also play inside the defensive line. He plays both the run and pass well and doesn’t have many glaring faults on tape. Colts have clear interst in Omenihu as they met with him at the senior bowl, combine and his pro day. Ballard has said he likes his edge rushers to be able to play inside and out.

However, Ballard has also said that he likes his edge rushers to be athletes and I think this is where Omenihu doesn’t fit the mold. A 4.92 second 40 yard dash and a 7.48 second 3 cone didn’t help his cause either. This may be due to Omenihu being 280lbs which is very heavy for an edge rusher. He may need to move inside permanently as a nickel rusher to win at the pro level.

As Reed mentioned, Bunting is the Colts type of cornerback. His mixture of length, physicality and ball skills screams Chris Ballard. Add in that he excels at zone coverage and he seems the perfect fit. Don’t forget that he met with the Colts at the combine too.

The only knock I have on this pick is the round he is selected in as i think Bunting will go a lot higher than the fourth round. I think he most probably goes in the second round and that his floor is in the third.

Reed attacks the defensive line in the same way I did in my mock, selecting Simmons then doubling down on the position. Wren is an interesting prospect, he is exactly the type of defensive lineman the Colts want as he fits the gap shooting 4-3 defense that the team runs very well. Wren also met and had an interview with the Colts at the combine, so the interest is obviously there. I have heard people compare him to Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones, who Ballard drafted in Kansas City, due to there get off ability and power. However, I think Wren is very raw and even though he has the traits to succeed it did not really translate to statistical production as he only managed 14.5 tackles for a loss and 3 sacks in his 4 years at college.

Poll

Who won this weeks Draft Face Off?

This poll is closed

76%

Elliot

(893 votes)
23%

Reed

(271 votes)

1164 votes total Vote Now

If you want to get up to date knowledge on over 200 draft prospects then download Stampede Blue’s second annual NFL draft guide, The Anthony Arena Memorial 2019 NFL Draft Guide. Head over to www.coltsdraftguide.com now and download your copy, it’s ONLY $4.99!!