Running back is far from a major need that the Colts have. However, some unknowns around that RB2 role could lead to the Colts using a draft pick on the position.
The Colts signed Jonathan Taylor to a three-year extension last October, which is largely why they certainly don’t have to address this position in the upcoming draft.
Behind Taylor on the depth chart is Trey Sermons, who averaged 4.6 yards per carry last season. Tyler Goodson would average 6.7 yards per attempt on 13 carries. The Colts also have Evan Hull, a 2023 draft pick, whose season was cut short in Week 1 with a knee injury.
All three players possess upside, which could result in a very solid running back room. However, there also isn’t enough of a sample size to go into the season fully confident that things will play out that way, either.
Combined, Sermon, Goodson, and Hull have 92 career rushing attempts, with Sermon having 78 of them. In the passing game, the trio has just 20 total targets as well.
Admittedly, going into the season, relying heavily on these three players comes with some risk because of the general lack of experience. In today’s NFL, having a reliable second running back who will see his fair share of snaps is a must. All of this could result in GM Chris Ballard adding to the running back room in the draft.
In total, the Colts only have seven selections, with only four teams having fewer and some much more pressing needs to tackle. So if Ballard does decide to add to the running back room, he will likely do so on Day 3.
This also doesn’t happen to be a very strong draft class at the position either, which could impact when or if the Colts add a running back, depending on who is available. Of the 10 position groups, PFF graded the running back position in this year’s draft class as the worst, receiving a C.
Below are a few names in this year’s running back class who are on the outside of PFF’s top 100 rankings, where the Colts could be looking to add to this position group:
113. Tyrone Tracy, Purdue
138. Will Shipley, Clemson
139. Isaac Guerendo, Louisville
166. Dylan Laube, New Hampshire
170. Dillon Johnson, Washington
184. Kimani Vidal, Troy
190. Cody Schrader, Missouri
207. Frank Gore Jr., Southern Miss
When evaluating running back options, in addition to how they perform as a ball carrier, the ability to impact the game as a pass-catcher, along with being a capable blocker in pass protection, are important skill sets to have.
Over the last two drafts, in particular, there has also been an emphasis on selecting some of the top athletes within their respective position groups. In 2022, no Colts draft pick had a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) below 9.34. In 2023, nine of Ballard’s 12 picks scored above 9.0, with the lowest registering an 8.48 on the RAS scale.