3 NFL Draft prospects to watch for the Colts — Week 5

In this weekly series, we’ll break down three prospects who could be great fits for the Indianapolis Colts.

In this series, I’ll be breaking down three intriguing prospects that the Colts should take a strong look at. These prospects could be blue chip first round prospects or diamond in the rough late round guys. This series will run weekly until the draft.

Cooper Dejean — Cornerback — Iowa

Dejean is one of the most talked about players in the draft and many experts believe he is the top cornerback in his class. Dejean checks off many of the Ballard boxes: he’s over 6 feet, very fast, and explosive. He is also versatile with experience at safety and cornerback.

He fits the Colts as well his style of play is better suited for zone and he has more experience playing zone than man at Iowa. We know the Colts under Gus Bradley like to run a lot of Cover 3 and with his athletic profile and experience, he should be well suited taking a deep third. He also offers value as a punt returner, an area the Colts have been lacking since the departure of Nyheim Hines and Isaiah Rodgers. He also has shown to be a great ballhawk, with a ton of interceptions over the past two seasons and some returned for touchdowns.

Dejean played on one of the best defenses in the nation with a ferocious front 7; when a cornerback has a good front that generates a lot of pressure, his job becomes a lot easier, so one has to wonder that if he’s without a strong front, will he be as dominant? Another issue I find is his fluidity when he changes directions; he can be a bit stiff. There are some questions but if he’s there at 15, the Colts will have a tough decision because he fits a big need and checks off a lot of boxes. I wouldn’t be surprised if I see DeJean in blue and white next season.

Jared Verse — Edge Rusher — Florida State

Verse is one of the most athletic defensive lineman in the entire draft. With a great broad and vertical jump, a blazing 40 time and very good length, his RAS score is amongst the highest in the edge class; in short, he checks off a lot of Ballard boxes.

His first step is explosive and he’s always the quickest one to react on the defensive line. He possesses a good inside swim move that usually gets him some separation. Those three characteristics alone should make him at least a capable starter in the NFL. What’s also good about him is he draws a lot of attention from teams and in many games he was double teamed. When he gets going, he can win inside and outside and despite being too undersized to play inside, he looks like he can play as a 3 tech at times.

My biggest issue with Jared Verse is his effort. Especially in the LSU game, you could spot him jogging on a ton of plays, even when the ball is close to him. He also seems to lose some fire when he gets initially stopped at the line of scrimmage. When I think of high motor players, I think of Maxx Crosby who screams across the line to make tackles where the play is running away from him; I don’t see that from Verse. His highs are fantastic and worthy of a top 15 pick, but his lows are bad and that inconsistency should scare the Colts enough to not take him. Another issue he he’s not long and while his athleticism makes up for a lot, his lack of length affects his bend which will hurt him against athletic offensive tackles in the NFL.

Malik Nabers — Wide Receiver — LSU

The Colts will probably have to trade up to get Malik Nabers, but if he slides to the latter portion of the top 10, a trade up can’t be ruled out.

The first thing that stands out to me are his releases off the line. He has a variety of them, but excels the most with foot fire. He does a good job of creating separation off the line, which on top of the releases is thanks to his quickness. He looks like he’s gliding on the field, whether it’s off the line or at the stem of the route. He finds ways to get open and locates space very well. The subtleties he shows during his routes (stuttering, dipping shoulder to avoid contact, stacking) are very impressive and not things you often see from receiving prospects. The people who say he is a bad route runner are wrong. He also shows an extra gear and can run away from defenders. He sometimes overthinks his running decisions and even underestimates his speed at times.

There aren’t many negatives with Nabers, which is why he’ll be a high pick, but you can argue that having such an talented offense will inflate his numbers. With a great quarterback and other explosive threats will make things easier for him as it will allow him to get better thrown balls on top of less double teams and bracketing. Another “negative” worth mentioning is I’d personally like to see him attack his cuts on his routes and he tends to be a bit tall and rounds them at times. In tight man coverage, those flaws will restrict him from getting separation in the NFL.

Nabers is as polished a receiver as you’ll find and if it weren’t for Marvin Harrison Jr, who might be the best receiving prospect since Calvin Johnson, Nabers would be the #1 receiver. He is amongst the 10 best receivers I’ve scouted over the past 10 seasons. If he slips past the 7th pick, the Colts should do whatever they can to snag him.