The week is finally here as the Indianapolis Colts put the finishing touches on their prep for the 2020 NFL draft, which is set to begin Thursday night.
Though the Colts won’t be on the clock until Friday unless they make a move up, this week will be all about cleaning everything up and making the final touches before the biggest event of the offseason arrives. The same goes for us as well be making our final predictions for the draft.
Without using a simulator, just good old fashioned projections, here is our final seven-round mock draft for the Colts in the 2020 draft:
Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 | Class Overview
Round 2
*Trade the No. 34 pick to the Vikings for Nos. 58 and 89*
Chris Ballard mentioned in his pre-draft conference call that he wants to add more picks. He wasn’t asked about it but still said it unprompted. As he has done in every draft, Ballard will move around and add some picks. Here, the Colts are able to move back later in the second round but add an extra third-round pick. It makes it easier to move this far back having the No. 44 pick already.
No. 44 | Michael Pittman Jr. | WR | USC
After trading back and adding an extra third, the Colts are likely to use one of their second-round picks on a wide receiver. Pittman Jr. is the perfect prospect for the Colts given his size, length and contested-catch ability on the boundary. He wins with physicality and has shown a knack for beating press coverage. He won’t win with pure speed, but he gets enough separation to be a threat downfield and on the intermediate routes as a possession receiver.
With Philip Rivers under center, Pittman Jr. would quickly become a favorite target. Addin that Pittman Jr. understands the NFL life from his father and was a senior captain with the Trojans, this pick makes too much sense.
No. 58 (from MIN) | Josh Uche | EDGE | Michigan
This spot is really tough because there are so many options. They could add a quarterback here or even an offensive tackle but given Ballard’s propensity for adding to the defensive line, I think we see him select and edge piece earlier than expected. With Uche, Ballard would be drafting another strong athlete with the versatility to work on the edge or as a SAM backer.
While he might be a little undersized to be a full-time edge rusher, Uche wins with speed, length and incredible bend when running the arc. He’s twitchy and rangy but has to develop his pass-rushing plan and overall instincts at the position. Seeing that he doesn’t have to start right away, Uche can hone his crafts and become a strong future piece of the front seven while giving the Colts a bendy, speedy rush on sub-packages to start out.