In the last few days, there have been rumblings that the Colts are looking to trade up in the first round in an effort to land one of the top cornerbacks.
In Field Yates’ final mock draft, he does have the Colts trading up to pick No. 10 with the New York Jets, but they go in a different direction, selecting Georgia tight end Brock Bowers.
Here is what Yates had to say about the selection and his reasoning behind it:
“I’ve heard some buzz from people around the league that suggests Indy wants to continue to build its offense around quarterback Anthony Richardson, and Bowers could be an instant game-changer. He’d be a massive boost for Richardson, as his excellent route running and after-the-catch traits make him a real problem for defensive coordinators. I like having Bowers team up with Michael Pittman Jr., Josh Downs and Jonathan Taylor. And besides, Bowers is simply too good of a player to last much longer than this in the draft.”
Yates didn’t specify what the Colts would have to give up in order to make this trade. However, using the Rich Hill trade value chart, we can get an idea.
In order to match the value of pick 10, which is 369 points, the Colts would have to part with picks 15 (315) and 82 (54). This would leave them with only two picks in the top-100 and six selections in total.
“I think it would depend,” said GM Chris Ballard in his pre-draft press conference on trading up. “There would have to be someone within striking distance we felt was really unique and a difference-maker for us.”
As Ballard said, moving up would require a ‘difference-maker’ being on the board, and Bowers certainly fits that mold.
From Day 1, he would provide Anthony Richardson with another reliable presence in the passing game and that needed playmaking potential that the Colts offense is searching for. Last season, Bowers averaged 13.0 yards per catch and was very good at picking up YAC.
Having this type of playmaking potential from the tight end position, along with Bowers’ versatility to line up across the formation, will open up the playbook for Shane Steichen and not only create mismatches for Bowers to exploit, but for his teammates as well.
According to ESPN analytics, Bowers has a 75 percent chance of being available at pick 10 but a less than 10 percent chance of still being on the board at pick 15 if the Colts stay put.