INDIANAPOLIS — Kevin Rogers, the Colts' director of pro personnel, discusses what he saw in guard Danny Pinter, the Colts' fifth-round (149th-overall) pick in this year's NFL Draft (excerpts from interviews done with local media members, as well as with Colts.com):
With Pinter, what did you see in his athleticism that makes you believe he can make the move inside, even though he played at tackle at Ball State?
Rogers: "It was interesting. You go there and you see a guy that's maybe not the prototype for offensive tackle, but then you see him slide in his feet, he ran sub-4.9 at the Combine, you see him run, get out in space and block defenders down the field. So I think from that standpoint it was pretty easy to see the athleticism. Then he goes the NFLPA game out in California and he kicks inside to guard. He made that transition really, really easily. And I watch him snap the football after practice, so I think he's going to be able to play some center, as well. The thing that jumps out with him is the character. The coaches tell you before you go to practice, 'Hey, watch this guy. He finishes every rep down the field like he's a skill guy. He'll run out every rep.' And you think it's kind of hogwash when you hear it, but you go out there and he does it. He's a two-time captain, toughest guy on the team. He's the exact type of guy we're looking for as a Colt."
With Pinter, does shorter arms play into it at all moving him inside? And do you see any Joe Reitz-like comparisons with him — Putnams on a bunch of weight, former tight end — or is that not really there?
Rogers: "It's a little different body type. I think, if you haven't seen him, a little different body than Joe. Joe's a little bit more of a tackle body. When you see Danny, you'll see he's got a guard-center looking body. He's not quite as stretched out as Joe. But that's a good comparison with the athlete. Joe was a basketball player that made the conversion, bulked up, played a little guard, tackle. That's not a bad comparison, but the body types are different."
What was so appealing about Pinter and getting him where you were able to?
Rogers: "Chris always says we're going to build with the fronts and we're going to build with guys that are smart, tough, and reliable. And there's no guy in the draft that defines that more than Pinter does. You talk about a guy that converted from tight end, they told them to add weight to get up to play offensive line, he adds 45 pounds, he's voted toughest Cardinal, toughest guy on the team, he's multi-team captain. He's going to be one of those guys that you're looking up and he's going to be helping us win football games."
