In the Colts’ preseason finale against the Cincinnati Bengals, their first two selections in this past April’s draft–Laiatu Latu and AD Mitchell–make a quick impact in this game.
The Colts began on defense and after limiting the Bengals offense on the first two plays of the game, it set up a third down, where Latu subbed in for Tyquan Lewis.
As we’ve seen from Latu throughout training camp, he used that speed and bend of his to quickly work his way around Bengals’ tackle Cody Ford to secure the third-down sack.
“It was great,” said Steichen of Latu’s sack. “That guy’s been working his tail off since he got here, and to go get that sack, it was big. He can rush the passer like crazy. I’m looking forward to the season for him, for sure.”
On the following series, the Colts’ first possession on offense, Anthony Richardson led a drive down the field that ended with a nine-yard touchdown pass to AD Mitchell.
With the Bengals blitzing and the other Colts’ pass-catchers working towards the end zone, it cleared out room underneath for Mitchell on a crossing route, who made the catch and then won the race to the end zone.
“It’s great,” added Steichen. “Obviously when you get out there, whether it’s a preseason game, regular season, but to get into pay-dirt as a rookie is huge. It’s a great job by Anthony, they brought blitz zero there, had to drift a little bit, got the ball off, hit him in stride. That was a big time play.”
On that drive, Mitchell also had another nine yard reception that put the Colts’ in an advantageous second-and-one situation.
Both Colts’ rookies are not only going have big roles this season but should be able to make a big impact. As the first defensive player off the board in April, Latu has looked the part since arriving in Indianapolis.
Mitchell, meanwhile, adds a new element to the passing game with his combination of explosiveness and route running.