INDIANAPOLIS — Garett Bolles seems to be a safety trapped in an offensive lineman's body.
Case in point: Bolles' performance at this month's NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. He was among the top offensive line performers in four out of the five events in which he participated, including the 40-yard dash (4.95 seconds; second), the broad jump (115 inches; first), the 3-cone drill (7.29 seconds; first) and the 20-yard shuttle (4.55 seconds; second).
That raw athleticism has made Bolles a sure-fire first-round prospect in this year's NFL Draft, and NFL Media's Charlie Casserly believes he would be an ideal fit for the Indianapolis Colts.
In his most recent mock draft on NFL.com, Casserly has the Colts selecting the Utah offensive tackle with the No. 15-overall pick. You can see Casserly's entire mock draft by clicking here, and here is his brief explanation on why he likes this pick for Indy:
"Andrew Luck gets some much-needed help in protection."
Brief, indeed.
Bolles certainly has an interesting background, having overcome some troubles during his teen years by turning to religion, and later football, to get back on the right track, according to his NFL.com Draft Profile.
The 6-foot-5, 297 pounder originally enrolled to play at Snow College, a junior college, and then stuck close to home when deciding what Division I school to attend for his final year of eligibility, heading to Utah, where he would become a first-team All-Pac 12 selection in 2016.
A West area scout for an NFC team told NFL.com's Lance Zierlein Bolles is the "Most athletic offensive lineman I've (evaluated) since I took over this area of the country. He's also mean on the field, which you love. I'm projecting him to get stronger once he locks into an NFL strength-and-conditioning program."
Zierlein compares Bolles to Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi.
"Because he's only played one year of FBS football and hasn't been able to fully fill out his frame over the last five years, Bolles will require a projection and conjecture than most of the tackles in this year's draft," Zierlein wrote. "He clearly has elite athletic ability and foot quickness, but his lack of core strength and ability to sustain blocks against power across from him is a concern at this time. While he has Pro Bowl potential for a zone-scheme team, his floor will be a little lower than you might like in an early round pick."
If the Colts were to select Bolles with the 15th-overall pick, it will be the second straight year in which they have picked an offensive lineman in the first round, having taken Alabama center Ryan Kelly with the No. 18-overall pick last year.
Kelly would go on to have a solid rookie year, starting all 16 games at center for Indianapolis.
Several offensive linemen have been linked to the Colts with their first-round pick this year, however, including Western Kentucky guard Forrest Lamp, who was Indy's selection in ESPN's Todd McShay’s most recent mock draft.
Just like with Lamp, Bolles would hypothetically be entering an already-crowded Indianapolis offensive line room. While the left side of the line appears set for the 2017 season (Anthony Castonzo at left tackle, Jack Mewhort at left guard and Kelly at center), the right side could very well be wide open for the taking, although one might expect that second-year guard/tackle Joe Haeg will get first dibs after starting 14 games at three different spots along the line as a rookie in 2016.
Other options at right guard and right tackle for the Colts currently include Denzelle Good, Le'Raven Clark, Austin Blythe, Brian Schwenke, Adam Redmond, Isiah Cage, Fahn Cooper and Jeremy Vujnovich.
The analysis from those producing content on Colts.com does not necessarily represent the thoughts of the Indianapolis Colts organization. Any conjecture, analysis or opinions formed by Colts.com content creators is not based on inside knowledge gained from team officials, players or staff.
