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Indianapolis Colts Committed to Drafting Best Players Available

By Kyle Nishida

Feb 19, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts general manager Ryan Grigson speaks to the media during the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 19, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts general manager Ryan Grigson speaks to the media during the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Indianapolis Colts want to take the best players available with all of their 2016 NFL Draft picks.

Despite their pressing needs, the Indianapolis Colts are not basing their entire draft strategy off of those concerns. They will evaluate the best players available at every position before ultimately making a selection. In a perfect world, the Colts would love to have the best player available be able to play a position where they need help. Unfortunately, drafts are never that simple.

In a press conference Wednesday, Grigson discussed the philosophy of drafting the best player available over drafting a player in a position of need.

"“I think it’s weak to look, no matter what your needs are,… at your board and see player ‘A’ here [high on the board] and then you have player ‘B’, ‘C’, and ‘D’ down here [low on the board], and you go ‘well we have to get a need’ and do that [grab lower player to fill a need]. That defies the whole process. I think it breaks the trust and moral of your scouts and all the guys that spent all that time, you know, stacking your board with you and all the coaches that went and worked the guys out and went through this exhaustive process.”"

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Grigson is absolutely right. Basing draft selections solely off of position needs is a bad strategy to use in the NFL Draft. The top NFL teams like the Seattle Seahawks or the Denver Broncos always find the best-valued players with each of their draft picks; no matter what round it is.

The reason why people might be hesitant about the Indianapolis Colts taking this approach is because Grigson has sometimes struggled to find the best available player, especially in the first round. Bjoern Werner is the example everyone brings up, and last year’s first-round pick Phillip Dorsett did not help him either.

However, in reality, Grigson has actually been fairly good at identifying talent throughout the draft. T.Y. Hilton, Clayton Geathers, Denzelle Good and David Parry are a just few of the many starters Grigson has found early and late in the draft.  The Colts need him to find more of these types of players in this upcoming draft.

Next: Phillip Dorsett Has to Improve in 2016

The Indianapolis Colts would love to address all their pressing needs in the 2016 NFL Draft. However, they will not panic if they cannot fix these concerns early in the event. They are committed to selecting the best player available with each of their six picks. Hopefully, the Colts find themselves in favorable situations where the best player available also addresses one of their top position needs.

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