INDIANAPOLIS –The 2016 season brought about many challenges for the Indianapolis Colts' defense, particularly in its secondary, where injuries and other issues reared their ugly heads week after week.
With the offseason now upon the team, will it utilize the upcoming NFL Draft to address those issues in the back end?
WalterFootball.com's Charlie Campbell thinks so.
Campbell, in his most recent mock draft, has the Indianapolis Colts taking Florida standout cornerback Quincy Wilson with their first-round pick in this year's draft.
First, here's a sampling of what Campbell had to say about this particular pick. You can see his entire mock draft by clicking here:
*"…Wilson would make sense because he would upgrade the Colts' pass coverage immediately.
After losing Vernon Hargreaves to the NFL, Wilson replaced him as Florida's starter alongside Jalen Tabor. Sources say the 6-foot-1, 213-pound Wilson could end up being one of the top cornerback prospects for the 2017 NFL Draft, and team evaluators feel that Wilson has above-average speed. In 2016, he totaled 33 tackles with six passes broken up and three interceptions.
Wilson is a longer press-man corner for the NFL with ball skills, but scouting sources say that there are aspects that Wilson needs to improve. He grabs at receivers a lot and could get called for pass interference penalties in the NFL. Sources also feel Wilson has above-average feel and awareness."*
Wilson – who has some bulk at 6 foot 1, 213 pounds – could also be an interesting pick for the Colts because he does have some position flexibility, having starred as a safety in high school.
That flexibility was critical for the Colts this season, as injuries forced a guy like veteran Darius Butler to at times move around from his natural position of cornerback to safety, and he showed very positive results.
But Butler is one of two members of the Colts' secondary that will likely go into the offseason as an unrestricted free agent, joining veteran (and starting) safety Mike Adams.
So with that in mind, it certainly wouldn't be out of the realm of possibilities for the Colts to pursue a young, talented player like Wilson in this year's draft.
At cornerback, the Colts go into the offseason with two of their starters from 2016 ready to return in Vontae Davis and Patrick Robinson (who ended the season on IR). The team also got strong contributions from four-year veterans Rashaan Melvin and Darryl Morris, and signed Charles James II late in the season.
Indianapolis also saw undrafted rookie Christopher Milton make some contributions late in the season in 2016.
So while the cornerback position appears set for the most part, the Colts know from experience that anything can happen, and that building depth at the position will be key. Which makes a prospect like Wilson all the more interesting.
