3. Ryan Kelly, Indianapolis Colts
Former Colts general manager Ryan Grigson has been justifiably panned for what was an unspectacular career, but selecting Kelly with the 18th overall pick in the 2016 draft out of Alabama was a rare brilliant move. In the transition from Andrew Luck to Jacoby Brissett (twice, once to to injury and once due to retirement), it didn’t matter who was under center for the Colts as long as Kelly was that center. In 3,398 career snaps, he’s allowed just two sacks in his NFL career (none in 2016 and 2017, one each in 2018 and 2019), and though he was aided in a timing sense by Indianapolis’ conservative passing game with Brissett in 2019, Kelly gave up just 21 total pressures, and he’s always been a pure masher in the run game.
If you're Marlon Mack and you want to run outside, your best bet is to follow Ryan Kelly wherever he goes. pic.twitter.com/MtxmEiqPML
— Doug Farrar (@NFL_DougFarrar) June 25, 2019
Kelly combines intelligence, leverage, agility, and accuracy in a combination that makes him one of the league’s best centers in any season, and it will be interesting to see how he handles new quarterback Philip Rivers — a more stationary passer with an idiosyncratic sense of consistency.