INDIANAPOLIS – Maybe it was never the need many believed it was this offseason.
Chris Ballard said at the start of the offseason that the ‘Colts will always be looking for rush,’ acknowledging that’s what ‘makes the train go’ on the defensive side of the ball.
But Ballard also made sure to point out that he thought the dire need to address the pass rush wasn’t as immense as others thought.
When Jim Irsay spoke to the media a few weeks later, he focused mostly on offensive needs (including ‘1 or 2 big playmakers at tight end or wide receiver). As Irsay made his way over to the defensive side of the ball, it was cornerback that got noted before pass rusher.
Frank Reich’s season-ending press conference stressed the need for the Colts to improve on third down and in the red zone, along with cleaning up some penalties as the major areas to get better in. There was no mention of the pass rush.
Judging by the Colts’ actions in free agency now four weeks into things, it doesn’t appear they thought the edge rush required major upgrading.
Even with the Colts lacking the consistent edge rush needed against the upper echelon quarterbacks, they chose not to tap into the rare combination of a young, yet proven, pass rush market in free agency.
Justin Houston, the team’s top sacker in 2020, remains a free agent. During last season, Houston himself admitted that he was having an inconsistent rush season, which is backed up by him finishing 63rd in quarterback hits last year. When assessing the consistent pressure for Houston and the Colts last year, and not just the sack numbers, that held this defense back. Earlier this week, Irsay said that the 32-year-old Houston is still an option to return to the Colts.
Young rushers Kemoko Turay and Ben Banogu combined for 1 sack and 3 QB hits in 23 combined games last year. Turay clearly was not his full self in coming back from a major ankle injury in 2019. But it can’t be overlooked that he enters a contract year having missed 23 of 48 career games. Banogu was a healthy scratch for half of last season, in his second year in the league.
Other current defensive end options on the roster include Tyquan Lewis, Al-Quadin Muhammad and Isaac Rochell. Lewis and Rochell are better suited as inside rushers on pass rush downs.
Despite one of the league’s best run defenses last season and the commanding presence of DeForest Buckner in the middle of the D-line, the Colts still couldn’t find that needed pop off the edge.
While some veteran options are still out there in free agency, addressing this need in a serious matter now shifts towards the draft.
Of course, relying on the draft for instant impact at pass rush isn’t wise. It’s something that Ballard has stated himself.
While Ballard’s draft success has been huge in giving the Colts a new and strong foundation, there’s been hardly any impact from the edge rush, despite high picks invested (Tarell Basham-3rd Round in 2017, Kemoko Turay-2nd Round in 2018, Ben Banogu-2nd round in 2019).
Basham was cut before the halfway point of this second NFL season. Turay and Banogu wouldn’t yet be considered locks for a second contract.
Has Ballard’s approach to drafting edge rushers (the Colts love a quick get off and that fast first step when evaluating that position) changed at all over the years?
Despite that, the Colts enter another draft needing to take one more big swing at edge rusher.
In the last 5 years, only 5 rookies have come in and put up at least 9.0 sacks in their first NFL season. Four of those five guys were drafted in the top-10.
Are the Colts going to find that rare Day 1 impact from the draft?
Is the lack of offseason movement at edge rush more belief in Kemoko Turay and/or Ben Banogu?
Free agency in 2021 appeared to offer a unique chance at bolstering the void at edge rush.
That has, largely, come and gone.
Now, the attention shifts towards the draft for a need that appears to be higher on the priority list for those outside the building, compared to the inside.
