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Jordan Glasgow: 'What Matters Is The Work You Put In Now Going Forward'

The Indianapolis Colts used their final pick in the 2020 NFL Draft on a hard-working defender who can play multiple roles for them in Michigan linebacker Jordan Glasgow, but he could very well carve out a role as a top special teamer in the NFL.

INDIANAPOLIS — There's nothing like a Day 3 NFL Draft pick with a little intrigue.

The Indianapolis Colts used their final pick of the 2020 NFL Draft on Saturday — No. 213 overall in the sixth round — on Michigan defender/special teamer Jordan Glasgow, who is now the most recent of three Glasgow brothers to call themselves NFL players.

Right off the bat, who Glasgow is as a player was a mystery to those unfamiliar with his game. The television broadcast listed him as a safety while the Colts' posted him at linebacker.

A versatile defender with a couple of brothers in the NFL? That sounds intriguing.

It wouldn't take long to get to the bottom of it, though, as Glasgow spoke to the Indianapolis media shortly after being selected. You can check out that entire session above, but here are some top takeaways:

» Glasgow has the advantage of already learning about NFL life from his brothers: As mentioned, Glasgow joins his two brothers in the NFL. The eldest, Graham, is an interior offensive lineman for the Denver Broncos who came into the league in 2016, and Ryan is a defensive tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals who entered the league in 2017.

All three brothers were walk-ons at the University of Michigan who would later earn scholarships and become starters, and then all three were selected in the NFL Draft.

"Yeah, I mean my oldest brother kind of started it out and he's was able to grind through it. Both of my brothers kind of went through it at the same time being only a year apart," Glasgow said. "My parents and grandparents really set us up with that mentality. My parents worked very hard at their jobs to put us into a good situation to go to a good high school, to go to a great college, to be able to take a walk-on spot at the University of Michigan and being able to help us pay for tuition and not be afraid to go to that type of school both athletically and academically to be able to chase our dreams. They gave us the opportunity. Both my brothers have capitalized on it and I've capitalized on it. I hope to continue to take the opportunity that they gave me and run with it."

As you can imagine, having two brothers already go through this draft process has been very beneficial for Glasgow.

"Yeah they've been good. I'm actually living with one at the moment (Ryan) and I'm seeing how he handles things, how he handles his body, how he handles his day-to-day operations," Glasgow said. "I've been able to learn a lot from him about what an NFL player and what a true professional really is."

» So, what is Glasgow's fit with the Colts?: Linebacker? Safety? Special Teams? At just a hair taller than 6-0, and at 221 pounds, it's hard to say what Glasgow's best NFL fit will be.

Glasgow himself is still figuring that out.

"Not yet. I had a talk with their linebacker coach. I feel like I'm going to be in their linebacker room," Glasgow said about what the Colts have said they envision for him. "Obviously, I know one of the reasons that I was drafted was for special teams, and I look forward to getting even closer with the special teams coordinator of the Colts and being able to work hand-in-hand with him. So I'm excited for what's to come. I'm sad that I can't go to Indianapolis tomorrow or over the next few days."

Glasgow is aware that his size and play style aren't necessarily prototypical at the NFL level, but he's excited to get started on whatever he's asked to do.

"Yeah, a lot of teams are looking to go with faster people that have a little more versatility in terms of coverage and in the run game. The key is that just because you're smaller doesn't mean you can't trade off in the run game and be able to handle the many things an offense can throw at you," Glasgow explained. "I don't know what the Colts necessarily think about me in terms of my ability as a three-down linebacker, but I feel like I have the ability to develop into a strong defensive player that can help them going forward."

Thankfully, Colts general manager Chris Ballard didn't mince words when talking about Glasgow in the team's post-draft press conference.

"We think Jordan Glasgow has got top special teams ability in this league," Ballard said. "He'll play linebacker for us, but he's got a chance to be a really special core special teams player and those are hard to find."

Glasgow was named the Wolverines' Special Teams Player of the Year in 2017, so the ability to stand out in that role is certainly nothing new for him.

» A fresh slate puts Glasgow on par with every other player; what he does from here is what matters: We hear a lot about the underdog type of player that goes on to do great things in the NFL. Whether it's their size, athleticism or other factors that have them overlooked, once you get an opportunity to actually be in the NFL, like Glasgow now has, how good he can be is now up to him.

"I heard a lot of positive things from a lot of different teams. I thought I was going to go I think in the sixth or late in the sixth. So I went around where I thought I would've gone if I was drafted," Glasgow said. "But I saw a lot of people picked before me and that got me — even though I went where I thought I was going to go and where I thought I should go. It got me excited and fired up to see how many people were picked before me and how many people that NFL teams think were better than me. They may have been better than me in college but what matters is the work you put in now going forward. They're putting a little bit more energy into how I am looking at my process going forward."

Some players get a little stubborn about how they want to be used in the NFL, but it's the guys who are just happy to be there and are willing to do whatever it takes to be successful that really carve out those long, gritty careers. Could Glasgow develop into one of the latter?

"Well, a lot of teams say no matter where you're drafted, you have an equal opportunity to compete for a job with someone who was drafted in the first, second, third or fourth round," Glasgow said. "Even if that isn't necessarily true and even if there is some preconceived notions with potential position in the draft – like you said, I'm used to that kind of preconceived notion.

"Early on in my college career, I'm used to going through it. I mean I'm used to changing people's minds about me," Glasgow said. "If someone has a bad opinion about me, I look forward to changing that. I'm just going to try and do the best that I can moving forward."

Get your first look at linebacker Jordan Glasgow after he was selected 213th overall by the Indianapolis Colts.

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