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The Indianapolis Colts made seven selections in the 2021 NFL draft in hopes of adding younger talent and more competition on both sides of the ball.
While the Colts certainly are excited about their new crop of players being added to the roster, some of the grades may not be too kind to them. And, of course, draft grades are arbitrary. No one knows what a player will do exactly. It’s all projection.
With that said, Luke Easterling of Draft Wire gave the Colts a “D” grade for their 2021 class.
Kwity Paye was a steal at No. 21 overall, and he filled their biggest need on defense, but things went downhill fast after that. The Colts spent their only Day 2 pick on another edge defender in Dayo Odeyingbo, and the rest of their entire class didn’t do a great job of hitting their big needs or giving them great value at other positions. Despite a glaring need at left tackle following Anthony Castonzo’s retirement, they waited until their final pick in the seventh round to address a premium position. Sorry, Carson Wentz.
GRADE: D
The Colts didn’t address the left tackle positon after Anthony Castonzo retired this offseason. They added Penn State’s Will Fries with their final pick of the draft, but it remains to be seen how much competition he will provide Sam Tevi and Julién Davenport at left tackle.
Adding Kwity Paye to the defensive line is a win for the Colts. His potential is incredible in their aggressive front. The selection of Dayo Odeyinbgo made many analysts scratch their head, mostly because they expect the Colts to draft based off of need.
However, Odeyingbo has immense upside to be a game-wrecker as long as his torn Achilles doesn’t take too much away from his explosiveness, which is a risky proposition.
The Day 3 additions are solid fits for what the Colts want to do at those positions with some of them possessing high upside if they can develop.
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