Michael Pittman Jr. headlines ‘A- draft’ for the Indianapolis Colts

The 2020 NFL Draft made history in more ways than one and capped the weekend as the most watched draft ever. The virtual nature of it was tremendous and thoroughly enjoyable for all, especially those NFL teams who nailed their selections.

The Indianapolis Colts are one of those teams, according to ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. who gave the Colts an A- for their haul.

Their first pick was, of course, none other than your very own Michael Pittman Jr., who was selected with the second pick of the second round, 34th overall, and as the Colts first pick of the draft after sitting out the first round.

So, how did (Chris) Ballard fare this year? I’m a huge fan of 6-foot-4 wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., who has legitimate No. 1 potential. He reminds me of former USC wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster, and they ran similar 40 times at the combine. For a wide receiver corps that struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness last season, Pittman will provide a spark. The Colts traded up three spots to snag Jonathan Taylor (41), one of the most prolific running backs in college football history. I thought he might sneak into the first round.

Then there’s quarterback Jacob Eason (122), whom Indianapolis was able to snag in the fourth round. I thought he was a fit for the Colts with one of their second-rounders, so that’s another good value, and I’m surprised no other team took a chance on him on Day 2. He has some consistency problems, but you won’t find many quarterbacks ever with his physical tools and 6-foot-6 frame. He’s raw, but there’s no reason he has to play anytime soon. This is a good spot for him. Local kid Danny Pinter (149) is an intriguing developmental tackle for Day 3, and wide receiver Dezmon Patmon (212) is another big, 6-foot-4 pass-catcher with some tools. Isaiah Rodgers (211) has some juice in the return game.

Will this class get Indy back to the playoffs? It’s certainly possible. It should challenge for the AFC South title with Tennessee and Houston.

Pittman does in fact headline that group who received such a high grade but it’s clear that the Colts did their fair share of west-coast scouting.

They drafted four players from the Pac-12 including Utah CB Julian Blackmon, Washington QB Jacob Eason and Washington State WR Dezmon Patmon in their haul.

Also, I can’t help but notice a spot-on comparison between Pittman and former USC Trojans great, JuJu Smith-Schuster in Kiper’s writeup.

Color me a fan of the Colts draft but an even bigger fan of Pittman’s potential with Philip Rivers throwing him the ball this season.

#FightOn!