Indianapolis Colts rookie and first-round pick Laiatu Latu was among the more efficient pass rushers in his NFL debut.
Latu was on the field Sunday for 20 pass rush snaps, and according to PFF, he won 20 percent of those reps. This ranked as the 17th-highest win rate in Week 1 out of 134 eligible pass rushers.
Latu finished behind players like Aidan Hutchinson, Myles Garrett, Von Miller, and Micah Parsons, among others.
For some added context, because overall, the Week 1 number can be a bit lopsided given the limited sample size, a 20 percent pass rush win rate last season would have been the seventh-highest mark among all edge rushers.
Those wins didn’t translate into an abundance of production for Latu, who had one pressure, but it’s a very promising sign for the rookie.
A high win rate shows consistency, and consistency will almost always lead to production.
Latu, the first defender off the board this past April, has looked the part since arriving in Indianapolis. Whether it be during one-on-ones, team drills in practice, or in live games, he’s been a steady disruptor along the Colts’ defensive front.
“It’s crazy, man,” said Kwity Paye about Latu during training camp. “The way how he just bends, like just seeing him, how he plays. Sometimes, the tackle will get him on his inside shoulder, and he just takes the shoulder away, drops, bends, and just keeps going. Like it’s amazing to see how he could manipulate the O-line and just play, man.”
Latu ended up playing 31 total snaps, which was third-most on the team at defensive end, behind Kwity Paye and Tyquan Lewis, who each played 52 snaps.
The Colts primarily utilized Latu in obvious passing situations, where he can pin his ears back and get after the quarterback. One would think that Latu’s opportunities will only increase as the season goes on, especially if he continues to win at such a high rate.