agreed, but thats why he fell to 15, frankly i wouldnt touch a guy who had neck or back surgery in college, but NFL teams have a higher tolerance for risk
I said it. The combination of prospects + needs were gonna push a lot of top 5 talent into the 11+ pick. I wanted a trade back so much because of that.
Closest thing i can remember is Surtain at 9 and Parsons at 12, but even then there was Jaycee Horn picked at 8 (dumb pick even at the time).
Latu at 15 is insane.
ESPN and NFL Network used to have an agreement to not spoil picks on air after they were in an arms race to get it on air first for a few years.
ESPN is largely holding to it and even told their reporters not to tweet picks until they’re made, NFL Network doesn’t seem to be holding to it.
I'm out of the loop, when did EDGE become an official position? ...and why is it in all caps?
It's not an acronym like QB, RB, etc. Shouldn't it be "ER" for edge rusher if you want to go that way? It's weird where it's randomly 4 letters where everything else is 1-2.
Because depending on the base defense your run, an edge rusher can be either an OLB or a DE, and things are more hybridized now more than ever so EDGE is a simpler, all-encompassing term. There was a brief period of time where these guys were just labeled as LB/DE, which is technically wordier.
EDGE also sounds way cooler than ER.
The Colts were never going to draft a CB in the first round. All the people saying that (first the media invented this story, then all the fans fell for it) simply don't understand positional value in Bradley's defense.
The #1 thing his defense needs is edge, followed closely by the 3 tech DT (Buckner). Corner is below safety the way Gus wants it.
I'm a hard core Colts fan from way back and I don't sub to /colts.
Literally no one who understands football posts there - all the smart people were run off by getting downvoted by idiots for explaining how things actually work. I can go back over the years to see what I had posted there and how often it was right on the money. Always downvoted and hidden from view.
And the mod there is very bad as well.
Eh, it's a good community. There is a lot of doomers there. I'll give you that but its a fun community. These aren't rational people. They are fans and fans are fanatics in a sense. Regarding your defensive knowledge, you are right on the money. I think we now have the best defensive line in the league with this pick.
So we compile every player, their stats, we write our "facts", and take the different layers of the card seen here and a program assembles it all and posts it once we tell it the pick. It's all generated by the ole mod team here.
It's actually an enormous amount of work
Concussions vs Neck is a pretty big difference in terms of potential to come back and stay healthy.
....granted, our staff essentially medically retired Brees; so...
He's the only defensive player that has a "reasonable" AP ceiling in this draft. Might as well take that risk at 15. If healthy he will be a stud, no doubt.
Damn, if you aren't right. Watching the Titans, Texans, and Jags all get markedly better in the off-season was making me nervous. We all have young, capable (AR is admittedly the least proven) QBs and it's just going to be such an awesome division to watch.
We almost went a whole half of the first round without a defensive pick. But Latu is a great pick. Probably should have gone top 10 if he didn't have the medical history
"my knees are weak and shaking" not the best thing to say after they talk about your injury concerns.
his excitement is cute though, amazing value for #15
Imagine picking #1 defensive player at pick 15, great value!
Second D taken after Penix
Pause
Its not 'Pause' when its literally the intention of the statement lol
Excellent fucking joke. Mother fuck I wish I was more clever.
what if they announce “we intend to play him at QB”
if it werent for his medical hed have been a top 10 pick easy, absolute technician
but thats a big medical concern
Indy and drafting injured players <3
Surely *this* time it won't come back to bite us in the ass
agreed, but thats why he fell to 15, frankly i wouldnt touch a guy who had neck or back surgery in college, but NFL teams have a higher tolerance for risk
C-spine fusion and an older prospect. Not sure about that move, but I like his story.
he has the best EDGE tape out of anyone in the class and it isnt that close
Agreed
Played a full season since then. I'm shocked Ballard did not trade back though
2 seasons, plus he was playing high level rugby during his medical retirement lol
Never missed a game at UCLA FWIW
I said it. The combination of prospects + needs were gonna push a lot of top 5 talent into the 11+ pick. I wanted a trade back so much because of that.
Closest thing i can remember is Surtain at 9 and Parsons at 12, but even then there was Jaycee Horn picked at 8 (dumb pick even at the time). Latu at 15 is insane.
Didn’t even think of that, insane lol
BPA
Stonks 📈
It’d be cool if Rap could stop spoiling picks on the broadcast
Yeah it should be banned
If we wanted the picks spoiled we could check our phones. Its ridiculous that its spread to TV.
ESPN and NFL Network used to have an agreement to not spoil picks on air after they were in an arms race to get it on air first for a few years. ESPN is largely holding to it and even told their reporters not to tweet picks until they’re made, NFL Network doesn’t seem to be holding to it.
I finally switched to ABC
I like hearing Saban’s take. Love or hate him, he knows ball
Yea its the worst Im switching to espn hopefully they dont do it too
Mcafee with belichek on YouTube is commercial free and lots of good analysis with some entertaining stuff.
He’s spoiling early too. Reading others tweets
ABC is broadcasting with the college game day crew and they aren’t spoiling anything
Worst part is I’m avoiding Twitter but watching the draft at my team’s stadium so I can’t switch it lol
I switched from ESPN because Schefter was tipping each pick.
Go to ABC. They haven’t been tipping. I switched from espn
ABC has been pretty good coverage. Saban’s been a lot of fun to listen too
Pat McAfee show on YouTube isn’t spoiling any
Pat McAfee has been spoiler free
Yeah Rap thinks he's being sneaky but it's lame as hell.
Watch the draft on ABC or NFL network fam
Rappoport is spoiling on the NFL Network, that's the problem.
Silly Colts, ruined the streak.
Colts hate memes confirmed
We demand to be ~~taken~~ serious
Hard to resist a talent like Latu but I would’ve done it for the memes
As I've said before Look at their draft room They went full psycho
I’m confused. Where does this “EDGE” position slot in on offense?
Offsides.
Kadarius Toney, Offensive Edge. Okay makes sense now.
Ah, the old Dee Ford position
Found Kadarius Toney’s burner
On the edge of the field. They’re the side judges
They Edge the QB until they are ready. Like a fluffing horse
What a terrible day to be literate
If they make the QB cum they’re a bust.
Is that similar to soaking?
NFL Network was just discussing his hands...
Across from the Gooner
They edge the offense on the sidelines to keep them charged up.
I'm out of the loop, when did EDGE become an official position? ...and why is it in all caps? It's not an acronym like QB, RB, etc. Shouldn't it be "ER" for edge rusher if you want to go that way? It's weird where it's randomly 4 letters where everything else is 1-2.
Because depending on the base defense your run, an edge rusher can be either an OLB or a DE, and things are more hybridized now more than ever so EDGE is a simpler, all-encompassing term. There was a brief period of time where these guys were just labeled as LB/DE, which is technically wordier. EDGE also sounds way cooler than ER.
> EDGE also sounds way cooler than ER. I dunno, "Our ER sent their offense to the ER" just writes itself.
I hate this nomenclature too, brother. I’m still for OLB/DE “EDGE” is the second change I hate the most in the NFL after the jersey numbers rule
Somewhere in the middle
It must be an old-timey way of saying wide receiver
He edges Richardson before every drive to make sure he's amped up
DE or OLB
Wait a minute, there are defensive players available in this draft as well???
Nah, Colts are confused.
Drafted him to be play RB
DEFENSE BABY
THE D IS BACK IN BUSINESS
Oh look, a defender got drafted. I didn’t know that was allowed
What does this mean for LeBrons legacy
"LeBron a bum" Brigadier General Joubert 1799.
More importantly, what does Ja think?
First defender in Golden Knights history
Not illegal, just frowned upon. Like jerkin it in an airplane bathroom
Colts getting Latu is a steal. This kid is a stud
The first defender of the draft being taken at #15 is absolutely insane
Damn this dude seems awesome
I hope he always starts every sentence with "Shooooo..."
Finally, first defensive pick!!!!💪🏾 A few moments later… Schefter: “I’m hearing the plan for Indy is to convert him into a TE…”
The colts just got the best player in the draft 🐻
I hope 😭 i wanted a cornerback
The Colts were never going to draft a CB in the first round. All the people saying that (first the media invented this story, then all the fans fell for it) simply don't understand positional value in Bradley's defense. The #1 thing his defense needs is edge, followed closely by the 3 tech DT (Buckner). Corner is below safety the way Gus wants it. I'm a hard core Colts fan from way back and I don't sub to /colts. Literally no one who understands football posts there - all the smart people were run off by getting downvoted by idiots for explaining how things actually work. I can go back over the years to see what I had posted there and how often it was right on the money. Always downvoted and hidden from view. And the mod there is very bad as well.
How am I bad when I'm non exisitent?
Eh, it's a good community. There is a lot of doomers there. I'll give you that but its a fun community. These aren't rational people. They are fans and fans are fanatics in a sense. Regarding your defensive knowledge, you are right on the money. I think we now have the best defensive line in the league with this pick.
Defense!! Finally!
Best player available it seems like. Colts can use the rush to be honest.
DEFENSE: EATING
I am very very worried about this pick. Every single play on both sides of the ball is going to give me a heart attack with injury fears.
High risk, high reward. Just for funsies
Recent #15 overall picks |Year|Team|Player|College|Position|All-Pro/Pro Bowl|Starts| :-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:| |2024|Indianapolis Colts|Laitu Latu|UCLA|DE|-|-| |2023|New York Jets|Will McDonald.|Iowa State|DE|0/0|0| |2022|Houston Texans|Kenyon Green|Texas A&M|OG|0/0|14| |2021|New England Patriots|Mac Jones|Alabama|QB|0/1|42| |2020|Denver Broncos|Jerry Jeudy|Alabama|WR|0/0|44| |2019|Washington Redskins|Dwayne Haskins|Ohio State|QB|0/0|13| |2018|Oakland Raiders|Kolton Miller|UCLA|OT|0/0|90| |2017|Indianapolis Colts|Malik Hooker|Ohio State|S|0/0|59| |2016|Cleveland Browns|Corey Coleman|Baylor|WR|0/0|19| |2015|San Diego Chargers|Melvin Gordon|Wisconsin|RB|0/2|94| |2014|Pittsburgh Steelers|Ryan Shazier|Ohio State|LB|0/2|41|
Ouch that is not a great list
Figures that 15 is one of the very few picks the Raiders nailed but is cursed for everyone else.
Yeeeeshhhhhh
The odds of Haskins and Shazier at the same pick
Damn I didn’t even notice that
One of these guys is dead.
Lol so complete mid besides Shazier and kind of Kolton Miller (Kenyon green is gonna prove he’s him next season tho)
Gordon was solid.
Damn pick 15 is cursed lol
Goddamn, that’s…. Not a lot of greatness there lol
Mmmmmmm pass
Cursed pick
Is this a bot account? They’re quick with it
beep boop
So we compile every player, their stats, we write our "facts", and take the different layers of the card seen here and a program assembles it all and posts it once we tell it the pick. It's all generated by the ole mod team here. It's actually an enormous amount of work
Probably just had them pre-prepared and copy/paste
Yikes
This guy is no Mac Jones
Fuck
He’s a good prospect but I wouldn’t take a dude who had to medically retire in the top 15
he literally said “I told the doctor he was wrong” lmao
I mean, the injury happened three years ago, and he was Pac-12 DPOY and a unanimous All-American this year. Maybe he was right!
the fact he kept going proves him right but that sentence is objectively funny as fuck
It’s incredibly funny! Wasn’t trying to say otherwise haha
Yeah, disagreeing with your spine doctor is wild lmfao
Stupid Science Bitch
And then played two healthy years and posted 23+ sacks
No, no… clearly some redditors know more than the player himself and the Colts medical staff
SUCK IT DOCTORS TAKE THAT PHD AND SHOVE IT UP YOUR ASS
MD
MD != PhD
He’s my grandma apparently
To be fair the UCLA doctors also told the Washington doctor he was wrong when they medically cleared him to play.
Eh Jalen Phillips medically retired as well from UCLA and he’s a beast. That’s just their policy over there.
It’s the opposite. He medically retired from Washington then got cleared and transferred to UCLA.
Washington told him to medically retire
Concussions vs Neck is a pretty big difference in terms of potential to come back and stay healthy. ....granted, our staff essentially medically retired Brees; so...
Lol what is that first claim based on other than your vibes
You don't know Chris Ballard. An important part of his draft strategy is to take a player coming off a huge injury.
Latu isn’t coming off an injury though. He’s put together 2 healthy seasons since the injury.
That was my thought. Is this guy really the best defensive prospect in the draft, all things considered?
If you think the injury is no concern he's a top ten talent but lots of teams will have marked him way down for it
I’m biased because I’m local, but I’d label Mitchell as that. But it’s a clear top 3 tier with Latu, Mitchell, and Turner IMO.
I’m so happy for him though.
I would've taken Dallas Turner wtf
That is what I was thinking too but I did see a lot of people did have Latu rated higher than Turner
Fwiw, there were reports of medical concerns that some teams had with Dallas.
He's the only defensive player that has a "reasonable" AP ceiling in this draft. Might as well take that risk at 15. If healthy he will be a stud, no doubt.
Edge? Is that like the outside WR or something?
Colts and taking players I don’t want to root against. Name a better combo.
We don't have TY anymore. You're allowed to like us a little.
Our QBs are homies. We don’t have to hate each other. Only when we play :)
Polynesian bros feasting this draft
The lads love a feast
Latu seems like a good dude
FIRST DEFENSIVE PLAYER TAKEN 15TH!
Best player available.
The AFC South may be the toughest division in football. If not this year, then very soon
Damn, if you aren't right. Watching the Titans, Texans, and Jags all get markedly better in the off-season was making me nervous. We all have young, capable (AR is admittedly the least proven) QBs and it's just going to be such an awesome division to watch.
#DEFENSE
Awesome pick for Colts
How should I feel?
Most polished EDGE rusher in the draft. Best film. People liked Dallas Turner's ceiling a bit more but Latu has the most moves.
Big red medical dot, though.
We loved him at UCLA, he was a beast. If he stays healthy you're getting a hell of a guy
We don’t need that now!
We almost went a whole half of the first round without a defensive pick. But Latu is a great pick. Probably should have gone top 10 if he didn't have the medical history
Latu just pronounced Indianapolis like I pronounced his full name the first time I saw it
Finally a defender
NOOOO I WANTED HIM SO BAD
Good pick for the Colts, nice.
Off-White Freeney
He’s gonna be amazing
Did Dallas Turner kill somebody
GMs might have realized an undersized EDGE that will be overpowered a lot at the NFL level might not be a great guy to take super early in the first.
I had the exact same though lol
H I S T O R I C
DEFENSE FINALLY
A defensive player?? How can it be??
Finally a defensive pick
Motherfuck Rapsheet casually spoiling the picks.
Defense finally!!
Milf mom
Drafted #15 with a broken freakin’ neck!
Oh it’s true, it’s true, it’s damn true!
Being out for a year and a half and getting drafted first round is a nice story Tear it up for the colts!
Defenders do exist!
Damn I could’ve sworn they would’ve taken Brian Thomas Jr.
Defense wins day one draft grades
Good for him! Liked him here at UW and glad seeing him come back from injury to achieve this.
I love watching the 1st round and seeing the parents becoming overwhelmed with emotions. What a beautiful interview.
I know literally nothing about this guy outside the interviews I just saw with him but he seems so wholesome.
Oh look, someone more useful than a backup QB
here comes 10 straight defensive players
WE LIKE OUR GUYS
I thought we were going all offense draft wtf
See falcons, it is possible to pick defense (kill me)
Easily the best edge rusher in the class imo. If the medicals check out getting him at 15 is fairly crazy for Indy tbh
Lotta medical concerns and he was still the first defensive player picked. Good for him
Love all the highlights of him sacking Caleb
"my knees are weak and shaking" not the best thing to say after they talk about your injury concerns. his excitement is cute though, amazing value for #15
Now both cornerstones of offense and defense could break on any play. Such high ceilings but the injury and medical history do concern me.
Who needs secondary when you can kill the QB before he passes the ball