INDIANAPOLIS — The Seattle Seahawks found plenty of success within their "Legion of Boom" secondary by utilizing tall defenders, particularly at the cornerback position.
So with the No. 2 cornerback position now wide open, could the Indianapolis Colts and new general manager Chris Ballard follow a similar path and go with a big, young, athletic corner to play opposite of Vontae Davis with their first-round pick in this year's NFL Draft?
Rotoworld's Josh Norris believes that would be the right direction for the Colts, as he has Indianapolis selecting Washington cornerback Kevin King with the 15th-overall pick in his latest mock draft.
You can see Norris' entire mock draft by clicking here, but here's what he had to say about King and the Colts specifically:
"15. Indianapolis Colts - CB Kevin King, Washington - I don't think the edge rushing group is as great as we made it out to be. New GM Chris Ballard comes from the Chiefs, and many of the Chiefs selections seemed to have an athletic spin to it. T.J. Watt is possible, but corner seems to be a position with less depth on the roster. King is the most athletic player in the entire class."
King — who stands at 6 foot 3 and weighs 200 pounds — put in Honorable Mention All-Pac-12 performances the past two seasons at Washington, but he really showed off his athletic skills at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Though his 40-yard dash time of 4.43 was solid, but not quite among the top in his position group, he was among the best of all corners at the vertical jump (39.5 inches; second), the 3-cone drill (6.56 seconds; first), the 20-yard shuttle (3.89 seconds; first) and the 60-yard shuttle (11.14 seconds; first).
In actual game action, King finished strong for the Huskies, allowing just one touchdown over his last 101 targets, according to his NFL.com Draft Profile.
But according to NFL.com's Lance Zierlein, King's size — and versatility — could lead to him playing around the entire secondary at the NFL level, and not necessarily be anchored at cornerback.
"Unusually tall cornerback with experience playing in the slot and as a starting safety," Zierlein wrote of King, whom he compared to Damian Swann. "Showed improved instincts and ball production in 2016, but there are still concerns about whether he has the athleticism and recovery speed to utilize his length to play the football. Might be best suited to more zone coverage or off-man based on his speed limitations, but in either scheme he'll need to improve his aggressiveness as a tackler."
King, of course, is just the latest in a long line of cornerback/defensive back prospects linked to the Colts in the first round by various NFL experts and pundits.
Others have included Chudobe Awuzie, Sidney Jones (though he suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon during his pro day), Desmond King, Marshon Lattimore and Quincy Wilson.
The links of a deep class of cornerbacks to the Colts are no surprise, given the team's current status at the position.
While Indianapolis has a bonafide No. 1 cornerback in Davis, it recently cut No. 2 cornerback Patrick Robinson. And while Darius Butler was re-signed in free agency, it's looking more like that veteran will be shifting more to a role as a safety in Ted Monachino's defense.
Those currently on the offseason roster that could certainly earn a look at cornerback for the Colts include Charles James II, Rashaan Melvin, Christopher Milton, Tevin Mitchel, Darryl Morris, Larry Scott and Frankie Williams.
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.
