Will Indianapolis Colts Keep Quiet on NFL Draft Opening Night?

Fourth-year Indianapolis Colts GM Chris Ballard doesn't have a selection until the second round on Friday, but will he try to trade up into the first round on Thursday night?

INDIANAPOLIS — Now that the long-awaited virtual NFL draft is set to begin Thursday night, will the Indianapolis Colts patiently wait until the second day to make their first selection?

The Colts traded their first-round choice, 13th overall, to San Francisco to acquire All-Pro defensive tackle DeForest Buckner last month. As a result, the Colts’ first choice isn’t until the second selection in the second round, No. 34 overall, on Friday.

One of the popular mock draft suggestions has Colts general manager Chris Ballard trading up into the first round to take a quarterback. But Buckner deal aside, Ballard’s draft tendency has been to trade back to acquire more picks. He’s done that in each of his three Colts drafts, and he said in a video conference call last Friday that he would like more selections than the seven he has in rounds two through six.

Another familiar refrain is Ballard not forcing a pick and sticking to the draft cliche of always selecting the best player available. Ballard reiterated he won’t force a pick on a quarterback, although the Colts don’t have one signed after 2020. What they do have is 38-year-old Philip Rivers, making $25 million for one season and the 16th-year pro hoping to prove he can play beyond that. And his backup is 2019 Colts starter Jacoby Brissett, who will be paid well at $21.4 million. Reserve Chad Kelly is also on the roster.

If the Colts aren’t so inclined to take a quarterback, the most logical choice based on team need is wide receiver. An argument could be made that at no position are they more thin — they re-signed Marcus Johnson on Wednesday to join T.Y. Hilton, Parris Campbell, Zach Pascal and Daurice Fountain.

But once again, Ballard offered a similar take on wide receivers.

“There is a lot of depth at wideout in the draft,” he said. “We feel very good about that at every level, from guys we think can start to guys that we think can play significant roles.

“I think you always got to let the draft play out. It’s hard to predict it before, it’s even hard to predict it when you’re going through it. You’ve just got to be patient and let it play out. You all have been around me long enough, we’re not going to force a pick. I think you make your biggest mistakes when you force things.”

The short list of popular wide receiver picks at No. 34 include, in order based on SI.com analyst Kevin Hanson’s position rankings, Laviska Shenualt Jr. of Colorado, Tee Higgins of Clemson, Brandon Aiyuk of Arizona State, Denzel Mims of Baylor, Michael Pittman Jr. of USC and Jalen Reagor of TCU.

If the Colts do go wide receiver, they could use one with some size. That favors Shenault (6-1, 227), Higgins (6-4, 216), Mims (6-3, 207) or Pittman (6-4, 223).

“You’ve got to let it play out,” Ballard said. “We’re always going to take the higher talent. Now if it’s even and it’s a position of need then, yeah, we’ll take the guy that’s the position of need over the even. Saying that, we do like the depth at wideout in the draft. Getting T.Y. Hilton back healthy again, getting Parris Campbell healthy again, having Zach Pascal – it’s not like where it’s a complete void at the position. We do think we have some talented guys there.”

Colts head coach Frank Reich conceded it’s a position of need in a March 31 video conference call.

“There’s always that combination of addressing what you need but who is the best player when available in the draft,” Reich said, “but certainly receiver is a position we are looking hard at.”

The Colts have another second-round pick at No. 44 overall, then are on the clock in the third round at No. 75. The remaining selections are at No 122 in the fourth round, No. 160 in the fifth round and Nos. 193 and 197 in the sixth round.

The short list of positions the Colts could address also includes cornerback, safety, edge rusher/defensive end, offensive line and running back.

Ballard will be making the picks remotely from the basement of his home, while in constant communication with his scouting staff. The team’s tedious preparation for participating in a virtual draft has also included adding another power generator at his home. If his Wifi has issues, Ballard unflinchingly said he’ll call those picks into the NFL on his cell phone.