Colts typically draft for need, and Indy has two obvious needs to fill

INDIANAPOLIS — Drafting for need has taken a public relations hit over the years.

Best player available is the philosophy most NFL teams champion. By taking the best player available, the thinking goes, a team is less likely to miss out on a superstar because its hands are not tied by the holes left on the roster.

That’s what teams say publicly.

The reality often lies somewhere in the middle. When the first round of this week’s NFL Draft ends, the majority of the picks teams make will end up filling significant holes on their rosters.

“I think that’s the general coaching-scouting tug-and-pull that you get,” Colts general manager Chris Ballard said. “Where we’re looking at: ‘Two years from now, this guy is up, we’ll draft his guy to replace him.’ In coaching, you’re like: ‘Screw that. I need today.’”

Partly because of the franchise’s reluctance to overindulge in free agency, the Indianapolis coaching staff has often gotten its wishes granted on draft day. Ballard has been using his top pick to fill needs for a long time.

Ballard opened his tenure with an opportunistic selection of Malik Hooker in 2017, but since taking Quenton Nelson to protect Andrew Luck in 2018, Ballard’s string of top picks — a blocker in 2018, a cornerback in 2019, a wide receiver in 2020, a defensive end in 2021, a wide receiver in 2022 and on through Anthony Richardson in 2023 — have all addressed positions of critical need entering the draft. His second pick has often followed suit.

Indianapolis almost always drafts for need.

The hard part is often figuring out which need rises above the rest.

“I think, honestly, whatever gives us the best chance to win,” Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen said. “Even though I’m an offensive-backgrounded guy, I do believe you take a really good player. It doesn’t matter offense or defense — a player that’s going to help you get better.”

The Colts appear to have two critical, obvious needs on either side of the ball as the 2024 draft approaches.

Wide receiver and cornerback.

Even though Indianapolis, like almost any franchise other than the team holding the No. 1 pick, has been careful to avoid tipping its hand at this point.

“We just had a long discussion about a couple guys — I’m not going to tell you what side of the ball — but what’s the vision for the player?” Ballard said. “It’s easy for scouts and (front office staff) to have a vision, but the coaches have to have the same vision, and we’ve got to be able to see things, how we’re going to end up developing (them) and what role this guy is going to play.”

Overall team needs could throw a positional curveball.

The availability of Georgia tight end Brock Bowers, a clear-cut first-round prospect with incredible abilities after the catch for his position, could convince the Colts to add another tight end to a room that is already crowded from a numbers standpoint. Defensively, Indianapolis pursued edge rusher Danielle Hunter in free agency before the former Viking ended up heading home to Houston, signaling a desire for an explosive speed rusher at a position where the Colts have plenty of power.

But the numbers Indianapolis already has at both tight end and defensive end make those positions more of a want than a need or a must. Even free safety, a spot where Indianapolis struggled last year, has two healthy young players with starting experience available.

The need at wide receiver and cornerback is more pronounced.

Only three Indianapolis receivers — Michael Pittman Jr., Josh Downs and Alec Pierce — played more than 125 snaps offensively last year.

“Usually, you’ve got your three guys, and then that fourth guy is your special teams guy,” Steichen said. “That’s usually how the league works.”

Only in an ideal situation.

Pittman, Pierce and Downs were remarkably durable last season. The Colts had all three of those receivers available for 16 of 17 games, the only absence coming after the vicious, illegal hit Pittman absorbed at the hands of Pittsburgh safety Damontae Kazee.

If Indianapolis had dealt with anything more serious at the position, the options were limited.

“Nothing against the (other) players we had in there playing, it was a rotation all year,” Ballard said. “That makes it really hard on the coaches. I blame myself for that one.”

Wide receiver is also a position of critical need because of Richardson.

Indianapolis is trying to develop a young, gifted quarterback, a task that requires help around him.

“You’ve got to protect him. That’s (No. 1), which I think we did a pretty good job last year, and I think we’ll continue to do well,” Ballard said. “You want to continue to add playmakers around him.”

A wide receiver would do that.

Particularly a wide receiver with the ability to make things happen after the catch. Indianapolis has its tough, high-volume target in Pittman, a slot receiver in Downs and a vertical threat in Pierce, but the offense has an opening for a player with electric ability in the open field, a desire Ballard has referenced publicly this offseason.

“You always want a guy who can catch a hitch-and-go, or catch a shallow and be able to make somebody miss,” Ballard said. “Also from scramble plays, that’s where a lot of them come from. All of a sudden, the quarterback starts to move around, guys break free and they’re in space.”

The case at cornerback hasn’t been made as obvious by the Colts this offseason.

But it is easy to see. Indianapolis brought back Kenny Moore II to play the slot and play the outside when the Colts have only two corners on the field, but Indianapolis is counting on a trio of young players to start on the outside, and both third-year cornerback Dallis Flowers (torn Achilles tendon) and 2023 second-rounder JuJu Brents (played just nine games a rookie).

Ballard has been pushing back on that narrative throughout the offseason.

“They’re no longer rookies anymore,” Ballard said. “Jaylon Jones is no longer a rookie, JuJu is no longer a rookie. Dallis Flowers, we’re hoping to get back healthy. … It’s not like these guys don’t have enough talent. Do we want to add some more? Of course, we always want to add competition.”

That last part?

Ballard’s said that before the draft in other years, about other areas of need. Then he went out and used his top pick on the position.

Drafting for need might get a bad rap these days.

But it’s often the way the Colts operate, and that’s important to remember as the 2024 NFL Draft looms.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts typically draft for need, and Indy has two obvious needs to fill