2026 NFL Draft thread - Day 3 discussion - Rounds 4, 5, 6 and 7

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Round 4 starts at Noon Eastern / 11 AM Central


Announcers:

ESPN/ABC: Rece Davis, Mel Kiper Jr., Adam Schefter, Matt Miller, Field Yates, Peter Schrager, Laura Rutledge

NFL Network: Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Ian Rapoport

[Racehorse]

Bet we go OL this round. I think Nussmeier is a potential target, as well

[Colts And Orioles]

Not expecting any Colts news tonight...but here is the Day 1 discussion thread.

Be interesting to see how many Hoosiers get drafted in Round 1.



Round 1 starts at 8 Eastern / 7 Central.


Announcers:

ESPN: l Mike Greenberg, Mel Kiper Jr., Louis Riddick, Booger McFarland, Adam Schefter, Laura Rutledge

ABC: l Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, Field Yates, Molly McGrath, Pete Thamel

NFL Network: l Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Joel Klatt, Kurt Warner, Ian Rapoport.











Round 2 starts at 7 Eastern / 6 Central.


Announcers:

ESPN: l Mike Greenberg, Mel Kiper Jr., Louis Riddick, Booger McFarland, Adam Schefter, Laura Rutledge

ABC: l Rece Davis, Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, Field Yates, Molly McGrath, Pete Thamel

NFL Network: l Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Joel Klatt, Ian Rapoport.











Round 4 starts at Noon Eastern / 11 AM Central


Announcers:

ESPN/ABC: l Rece Davis, Mel Kiper Jr., Adam Schefter, Matt Miller, Field Yates, Peter Schrager, Laura Rutledge

NFL Network: l Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Ian Rapoport.





o


This was an excellent convergence of the draft-day threads.



A) l Round 1 l (There were no Colts Draft picks, but discussions about it were warranted.)


B) l Rounds 2 and 3 l (Upper Round draft picks, often similarly regarded.)


C) l Rounds 4, 5, 6, and 7 l (Middle to Lower Round draft picks.)



In my rat's ass of an opinion, this is much more efficient than having 7 separate threads.

o

[Dam8610]

Bet we go OL this round. I think Nussmeier is a potential target, as well

I'm thinking Skyler Bell or Bryce Lance at 113 and Jude Bowry or Jager Burton at 135.

[HoosierinFL]

Maybe im just being a homer but i think Elijah Sarrat can play a role similar to Pittman

[Dam8610]

Players I'd like the Colts to draft:

RB
Adam Randall
Eli Heidenreich

WR
Skyler Bell
Bryce Lance
Elijah Sarratt
Kevin Coleman Jr.
Josh Cameron

TE
Jack Endries
Dae'Quan Wright

OL
Brian Parker II
Jude Bowry
Jalen Farmer
Logan Taylor
Sam Hecht
Billy Schrauth
Jager Burton
Kage Casey

EDGE
Dani Dennis-Sutton
Caden Curry
Jack Kelly
Michael Heldman

IDL
Kaleb Proctor
Zxavian Harris
Gracen Halton
Jordan Van Den Burg
Rene Konga
Landon Robinson

LB
Kyle Louis
Kaleb Elarms-Orr
Jimmy Rolder
Deontae Lawson
Harold Perkins Jr.
Justin Jefferson
Cole Wisnewski
Red Murdock
Karson Sharar

S
Jalon Kilgore
VJ Payne
Kamari Ramsey

CB
Keith Abney II
Malik Muhammad
Will Lee III
Ephesians Prysock
Charles Demmings
Andre Fuller

[Dam8610]

Maybe im just being a homer but i think Elijah Sarrat can play a role similar to Pittman

Bell feels like a poor man's Reggie Wayne to me.

[IndyNorm]

Maybe im just being a homer but i think Elijah Sarrat can play a role similar to Pittman

Agreed. I'd be happy if we end up drafting Sarrat and think he'll be a good possession receiver ala MPJ.

Although we definitely need OL, DL, and more LBs as well. So won't be upset if we prioritize those positions over WR.

[Dam8610]

Kyle Louis or Dani Dennis-Sutton are who I'd like to see the Colts draft at 113 if they go defense.

[apballin]

Caden Curry for sure

[IndyNorm]

Speaking of IU players, I'd like to see us spend one of our 7th rounders on Stephen Daley. He won't see the field until late in the season at the earliest or more likely '27, but he was an a stud in his only season in the B1G.

Would also like to see us pick Aiden Fischer at some point today.

[Dam8610]

Farmer is a good pick. I like it.

[Hoopsdoc]

Seems like we have more pressing needs than guard.

[apballin]

Seems like we have more pressing needs than guard.

I’m all for Oline depth I love this pick

[Dam8610]

Seems like we have more pressing needs than guard.

Needed a backup IOL desperately. Hopefully Bryce Lance gets to 135.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Seems like we have more pressing needs than guard.

I think the Colts have adjusted their value grades a little for OL prospects because of the 2021 draft...that was the draft after Castonzo retired. Pretty sure they were planning to draft a OT to replace him, but other teams kept snagging players before they reached the spot where the Colts graded them. Ever since, it seems the Colts are a little more aggressive with OL prospects

[IndyNorm]

Needed a backup IOL desperately. Hopefully Bryce Lance gets to 135.

Yes we did. Wouldn't be surprised to see us add an OC unless Farmer can play there since we have pretty much nothing backing up Bortolini. Maybe OT as well since we really only have Freeland for depth who's coming off a broken leg and had regressed from his rookie year.

Also, was bummed to see Sarratt go 2 picks after we took Farmer.

[Dam8610]

Boettcher is okay, but I would've preferred Kyle Louis.

[Hoopsdoc]

Boetcher is a guy I really like. Tough, hard nosed, and plays with passion.

[Dam8610]

Meanwhile we still need a WR, hope Bryce Lance makes it to 156.

[Hoopsdoc]

I guess Ballard learned his lesson about linebackers after last year. He’s always a year late on this stuff.

[Hoopsdoc]

Meanwhile we still need a WR, hope Bryce Lance makes it to 156.

Lance to the Saints with the very next pick.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Boetcher is a guy I really like. Tough, hard nosed, and plays with passion.

Added bonus...it will give announcers something to talk about..."Did you know he played BASEBALL and was an outfielder?" Similar to what they do with MAC and basketball

[IndyNorm]

Is Boettcher good in coverage? If not then this is a redundant pick behind Allen.

[Kray007]

I guess Ballard learned his lesson about linebackers after last year. He’s always a year late on this stuff.

The starters were supposed to be Carlies and Franklin. Zaire was coming off a pro bowl season. Carlies was the talented young player expected to step up. Linebacker should have been a strength.

Unfortunately, Carlies got hurt and Franklin’s performance dropped off a cliff. It’s unfortunate, but I’m not sure how we can expect Ballard to anticipate things like that.

[Kray007]

Is Boettcher good in coverage? If not then this is a redundant pick behind Allen.

Depth and special teams early in his career.

[IndyNorm]

The starters were supposed to be Carlies and Franklin. Zaire was coming off a pro bowl season. Carlies was the talented young player expected to step up. Linebacker should have been a strength.

Unfortunately, Carlies got hurt and Franklin’s performance dropped off a cliff. It’s unfortunate, but I’m not sure how we can expect Ballard to anticipate things like that.

You have a point with Franklin (although his play definitely started to decline in '24), but you don't with Carlies. Ballard should know by now to not bank on unproven, injury prone players to seamlessly step in and make major contributions.

[Oldcolt]

Ballard is superior at drafting offensive lineman. Anybody he takes on the offensive line has a decent chance to be a good player.

[Kray007]

You have a point with Franklin (although his play definitely started to decline in '24), but you don't with Carlies. Ballard should know by now to not bank on unproven, injury prone players to seamlessly step in and make major contributions.

In 2024, Carlies’s 242 snaps was a decent sample size. Over that span, he got a grade of 83.1 in coverage by PFF, good for 3rd best among Linebackers.

[IndyNorm]

In 2024, Carlies’s 242 snaps was a decent sample size. Over that span, he got a grade of 83.1 in coverage by PFF, good for 3rd best among Linebackers.

It's too bad PFF grades don't translate into actual wins b/c we'd be unbeatable.

His actual objective stats paint a different picture: 10 games played w/ 6 starts. 36 total tackles, 1 sack, 1 PD, 0 Ints, and 0 FFs his rookie year. So hurt a large part of the season and average at best production. Not saying the guy hadn't shown any promise, but a wiser GM would have had a better backup plan than JAGS/ST guys.

And this isn't the first time something like this has happened under Ballard. Paris Campbell, Matt Pryor, Juju Brents to name a few. Maybe this time around Ballard finally learned something.

[Dam8610]

I really like the last 3 picks. I think Curry's floor is quality rotational DE, with a ceiling of a quality starter. McGowan can compete for RB2, and hopefully some combination of he and Giddens can take some of the workload off of Taylor. Deion Burks was seen by many as a Day 2 WR and could realistically compete for the WR3 spot.

[YDFL Commish]

I really like the last 3 picks. I think Curry's floor is quality rotational DE, with a ceiling of a quality starter. McGowan can compete for RB2, and hopefully some combination of he and Giddens can take some of the workload off of Taylor. Deion Burks was seen by many as a Day 2 WR and could realistically compete for the WR3 spot.

I like the first 3 picks and the last pick, the rest were meh, imo.