Welcome to Stampede Blue's 2010 NFL Draft coverage and preview page!
For the past four years, we Colts bloggers have tried to guess the players Bill Polian is interested in drafting or signing following the draft. We do profiles of these players (evaluating their strengths and weaknesses) to determine whether or not they would work within the schemes the Colts use.
It doesn't matter if they project in Round 1 or Round 7. If they were scouted and seem to fit what the Colts look for in a player, we evaluate them.
This season, Joe Baker (aka, shake n bake) is the unquestioned master of the draft profiles. But even a master needs a bit of help, which is why longtime Stampede Blue writers Colt Homer and Matt Grecco (aka, mgrex03) and dedicated commenter MetalMilitia are lending a hand with a few profiles of their own.
Then, when the draft comes, we see how our guys stack up. Do some get drafted? Do others get signed as rookie free agents? Or, do some get signed further on down the line after they've been drafted and cut by other teams? Who knows. The point is, more often than not, we're pretty good as determining who the Colts like in the draft.
Players evaluated:
| Name | Position | Height | Weight | School | Quick Hit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Brandon Graham | DE | 6'2" | 270 | Michigan | Graham is a powerful end who can bring some run D and power rushing to the DE spot behind Freeney and Mathis, as well as take the pure pass rusher role if needed. Graham's combine numbers were just solid, it was his college production that's eye popping. |
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Earl Thomas | CB | 5'10" | 197 | Texas | He's got the cover skills and elite athleticism to move to CB, the deep speed and zone skills to sit on top as a FS and showed the size and strength at the combine to stay at his college position of SS. His flaws are a bit of over-aggressiveness leading to bites on PA fakes and overpursuit in run support |
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Charles Brown | OT |
6'6" | 298 | USC | Brown is a prototypical pass blocking left tackle. His technique is near flawless and amazing for coming out of college. He weighed in at over 300 pounds at the Combine, so his size is less of a question. He made up for any size difference in college by using his technique to dominate the opponents. |
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Devin McCourty | CB | 5'11" | 190 | Rutgers | McCourty screams scheme fit. A bit undersized, but physical in run support. Better in zone than man (though he can and has played man, so it shouldn't be an issue for him to man up when the blitz comes). |
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Everson Griffen | DE | 6'3" | 265 | USC | His size and speed combination is ridiculous, but I am not sure if it will translate. He has a lot of weaknesses that he will need to fix. Luckily for him, he would not be thrust into a starting position immediately with the Colts. He would be risky, but he could involve into another star. |
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Mike Iupati | G | 6'5" | 330 | Idaho | Iupati is a mauling run blocker, whose immense strength and excellent quickness off the snap makes it near impossible for a defender to push the pocket on him. While he's a departure from the normal small athletic archetype, he's not a immobile "big fatty", moving surprisingly well in space for a man his size. |
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Chad Jones | SS | 6'2" | 221 | LSU | Chad Jones is one of the most intriguing non-OT prospects to me in this entire draft. At 6'2" 221, he is massive for a safety and could become a linebacker for the Colts. |
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Brian Price | DT | 6'1" | 295 | UCLA | Price looks like a Top 15 talent, and if he falls all the way to pick 31, I don't see how the Colts could pass him up. He's a perfect scheme fit, and would be a great value there. I have a feeling, much like Peria Jerry last year, he won't be around when the Colts pick. |
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Maurkice Pouncey | C | 6'5" | 318 | Florida | Pouncey started his Gator career as a right guard. He started 11 games that year and was only the seventh Gator to start opening day his freshman year. I'd say that is significant coming from a powerhouse program like Florida. |
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Daryl Washington | LB | 6'3" | 234 | TCU | While Gary Brackett's contract extension has pushed LB need onto it's traditional backburner, Daryl Washington is still the kind of rangy cover LB with the experience holding down against the run to excel at OLB or in the middle for Indy. |
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Ricky Sapp | DE-LB | 6'4" | 242 | Clemson | Sapp's athleticism is his top asset. He is a great edge rusher and pursues well. His light weight and lanky frame hurts him when he's run at and means he doesn't have a good bull rush to pair with his speed moves. |
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Corey Wootton | DE-DT | 6'7" | 270 | Northwestern | With Raheem Brock gone there's a vacancy on the DL. Corey Wootton is one of the prospects who could step into Brock's role. Wootton is a 6'6" 270lb lineman who played both DE and DT at Northwestern. |
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Rob Gronkowski | TE | 6'6" | 258 | Arizona | "Gronk" finished his career with nearly 1,200 yards on 75 receptions with 16 TDs despite playing in just 22 games. His hands are widely praised, he runs good routes, that combined with his great size make him an excellent receiving weapon. |
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Jermaine Gresham | TE | 6'5" | 259 | Oklahoma | What made him an elite prospect was great size at 6'5" 259lbs combined with enough speed to stretch down the seam and very good route running. In addition he is a YAC machine using great strength to bully and bull over DBs downfield. |
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Sean Weatherspoon | LB | 6'1" | 239 | Missouri | Weatherspoon is an excellent zone cover guy with sideline to sideline speed and the size at 6'1" 239lbs to play any LB spot in a smaller scheme like Indy's. In 3 years starting at Missouri Weatherspoon totaled 393 tackles, 42.5 for a loss, 12.5 sacks, 17 passes broken up and 4 INTs. |
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Jason Pierre-Paul | DE | 6'5" | 270 | South Florida | Pierre-Paul, has the potential to be the best pass rusher in the class, but he's also one of the odds on favorites to be a bust. JPP is about as far from a finished NFL ready prospect as you'll see on the first day. |
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Arthur Jones | DT | 6'3" | 300 | Syracuse | Had he entered the NFL Draft in 2009, he might have been the first DT taken. However, injuries his Senior year robbed Jones of another spectacular college season. He's a tough player who can penetrate the line and disrupt backfields. |
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Jared Odrick | DT | 6'5" | 304 | Penn State |
Odrick would be a very useful player on the DL, where he should be able to hold up very well against the run at the 3-tech, and push the pocket in passing situations while paired with a penetrator. |
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Tyson Alualu | DT | 6'2" | 291 | California |
This Cal Bear has been a disruptive force at both DT and DE positions. He fits the mold of a Colts DT at 6'2, 291 lb. and is known as a high character guy |
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Chris Cook | CB | 6'2" | 212 | Virginia |
Like Devin McCourty, Cook screams "scheme fit". He is a tall corner (6'2) with perhaps not great speed, but pretty decent speed (4.48 40). He is better in zone coverage then man, but is physical enough and willing enough to do so. |
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Corey Peters | DT | 6'3" | 301 | Kentucky |
Peters is a late round prospect who seems to fit perfectly with the ability and willingness to learn that was emphasized on the Sloan panel, and his physical tools seem to be in-line with a Colts 3-tech. |
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Alex Carrington | DE | 6'5" | 285 | Arkansas St. |
Carrington has the kind of frame and skill set to not just eat snaps for the undersized rushers, but really be a factor on run downs. |
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Roddrick Muckelroy | OLB | 6'2" | 246 | Texas |
Muckelroy is big enough for the Colts at LB, while his speed isn't great he is quick with very good instincts allowing him to play well in pass coverage and to make plays sideline to sideline anyway. |
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Kyle Wilson | CB | 5'10" | 194lbs | Boise St. |
Wilson would bring CB depth with starter potential and as a bonus Wilson had success as a punt returner at Boise State, returning 64 punts for 808 yards (12.6 ave) and 3 TDs in his career. |
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Trindon Holliday | RET | 5'5" | 161lbs | LSU |
His tremendous speed has given him the ability to be highly versatile as he lined up everywhere in the LSU offense from WR, to slot, to RB. However, his true value comes in the return game. |
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Jerry Hughes | DE | 6'2" | 254lbs | TCU |
Hughes reminds me in many ways of Robert Mathis, the size, the small school, tendency for the strip sack. Hughes' superior size, level of competition and experience in coverage has his stock on the edge of the 1st round. |
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Jacoby Ford | WR/RET | 5'9" | 189lbs | Clemson |
Unlike his counterparts, he isnt short and unproductive (Holliday) and he isn't short and productive but with character flaws (Brandon Banks). The Colts must invest in a kick/punt returner because for too long, it has played a factor to losses in some of the Colts biggest games |
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Eric Norwood | DE/OLB | 6'1" | 245lbs | South Carolina |
Norwood definitely has the tools to contribute to a NFL defense, but the big question is where? He's an elite pass rusher and played the run well as a linebacker, but such raw coverage skills really limit how he could be used. |
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Brandon Ghee | CB | 5'11" | 195lbs | Wake Forest |
There were far too many times where I had flashbacks to Tim Jennings. It seems like Ghee is a little quicker, and a little harder hitter, but the same symptoms that we all harped on Jennings for show up quite often with Ghee. I do not like him as a 2nd round pick, but if falls to the 3rd, he might not be a bad investment. |
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Amari Spievey | CB | 5'11" | 195lbs | Iowa |
Spievey is a perfect fit to play the short zones and support against the run in a Cover-2/Tampa-2 heavy scheme. In addition to his great play as a zone CB. Spievey stood out as a gunner on punts where his sure tackling was a great asset. |
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Javier Arenas | CB | 5'9" | 197lbs | Alabama |
Arenas has displayed the skills to be an excellent corner within the Colts system and brings added value in the return game, the Colts so desperately need in their special teams. |
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AJ Edds | OLB | 6'4" | 246bs | Iowa |
Edds seems to be a great fit at the SAM position where he should hold up against the run better than most Colts LBs and would be a excellent cover guy. |
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Pat Angerer | MLB | 6'0" | 235bs | Iowa |
Two undrafted Colts LBs came to mind when considering how Angerer would fit. Is Angerer more like Gary Brackett, who can perform at a high level without good size or great athleticism thanks to his awareness, instincts and effort, or his he like former Colts LB Jordan Senn, an undersized but prolific college tackler whose game translates only to special teams in the pros? |
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Kyle Calloway | RT/G | 6'6" | 323bs | Iowa |
Calloway's a mid to late round pick who could contribute quickly on the OL. Having watched Calloway the last few years he was usually a player that I absolutely loved having, with him mauling opposing D linemen in the run game and on attempted bull rushes, but he had frustrating moments against the best edge rushers he faced |
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Tony Moeaki | TE | 6'3" | 245bs | Iowa |
When he was healthy Moeaki showed off excellent hands, good route running, solid speed and athleticism and fantastic blocking. Moeaki's skill set is ideal for a team looking for a strong blocking in-line TE who can be a factor in the passing game. The serious risk is that Moeaki is likely to have trouble keeping that skill set on the field. |
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Akwasi Owusu-Ansah | CB/KR | 6'0" | 207bs | Indiana (PA.) |
AOA has an elite combination of size (6' 0 1/4" with long arms), and speed (4.47 40 at the combine, .02 off the fastest CB. 4.31 Pro Day 40). Unlike many freakish players AOA was productive in college, but at the DII level. In two years as a starter he picked off 10 passes and was often avoided by opposing offenses |
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Donovan Warren | CB | 5'11" |
193lbs |
Michigan |
Warren's technique issues even in zone mean he isn't likely to step right into a big role well (as a more polished zone CB like Spievey might), but Warren could be available as late as the 6th round, where he'd be a steal for a team looking for a CB to play mostly short zone. |
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Arthur Jones | DT | 6'3" |
301lbs |
Syracuse |
Jones' quickness is his best attribute. He is very good at penetrating the o-line and getting into the backfield. Notre Dame fans shudder whenever his name is uttered. In a 2008 game, Jones recorded a college career-high 15 tackles. Four of those tackles were for losses and he scored 1.5 sacks that day as well. |
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Jared Veldheer | OT | 6'8" |
312lbs |
Hillsdale |
At just over 6'8" and 312lbs with the athleticism to place among the top OTs in the 40, bench, vertical/broad jumps, 3 cone drill and 20 yard shuttle Veldheer turned heads at the combine. He's not all freak size and athleticism though, Veldheer was a 4 year starter at LT for Hillsdale, dominating D-II competition. |
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Rodger Saffold | OT | 6'5" |
316lbs |
Indiana |
Fox has LT size at 6'7" 303lbs and was a high school TE before Miami plugged him right in as a true freshman at RT, the questions around him are whether he has the absolutely elite athleticism required of a LT, a need to fill out his frame and get stronger for the run game and some concerns about how well he's recovered from the serious leg injury last year. |
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Jason Fox | OT | 6'7" |
303lbs |
Miami |
Fox has LT size at 6'7" 303lbs and was a high school TE before Miami plugged him right in as a true freshman at RT, the questions around him are whether he has the absolutely elite athleticism required of a LT, a need to fill out his frame and get stronger for the run game and some concerns about how well he's recovered from the serious leg injury last year. |
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Kareem Jackson | CB | 5'11" |
196lbs |
Alabama |
Jackson is a very physical, aware and instinctive DB with the tools to play in Indy's scheme. His lack of elite athleticism isn't an overwhelming concern on a team that gives CBs help regularly and his gambler streak can probably be coached out |
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Austen Lane | DE | 6'5" |
276lbs |
Murray St. |
Austen Lane has good size (6'7 - 259 lbs.) and strength, and can be extremely disruptive in the open field as a powerful tackler. He is a great athlete with elite initial quickness and an explosive first step; has excellent speed, |
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Daniel Te'o-Nesheim | DE | 6'3" |
263lbs |
Washington |
Te'o-Nesheim isn't highly regarded since most consider him purely a 4-3 situational rusher due to his undersized frame (6'3" 263lbs) and a perceived lacking of the athleticism to convert to OLB in a 3-4. Still Te'o-Nesheim was a phenomenally productive end |
