Indianapolis Colts: TJ Green Needs to Perform Well in 2016
By Kyle Nishida
When the Indianapolis Colts selected safety T.J. Green in the second round, they obviously had long-term plans for him. Green will also be expected to contribute immediately for them in 2016.
Green played safety for two years with the Clemson Tigers, and was only a one-year starter for them (his final season). He was originally recruited to be a wide receiver, but made the switch to safety during his freshman year.
In his two seasons as a safety, Green played 25 games and accumulated 113 combined tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and one interception. These are pretty good numbers for someone who never played safety prior to college.
The Indianapolis Colts, like a lot of other teams, noticed Green more during the draft process. His 4.34-second 40-yard dash at the NFL combine forced the Colts to closely examine him. The Colts have always been attracted to speed, which made Green a plausible fit for them. The Colts want to use that speed as a weapon in 2016.
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Despite playing safety for only two years of his entire football career, the Indianapolis Colts expect Green to be a productive player in 2016. This year, the Colts do not have the luxury of developing rookie players slowly, especially their second round pick.
Currently, safeties Mike Adams and Clayton Geathers are above Green on the depth chart. However, Green is only one injury away from being a starting safety. He will have to play big minutes if one of those starters get hurt. Luckily, the Colts have recent experience developing and using their rookie safeties effectively.
Last season, the Colts got Geathers game reps early in the season by playing him on a situational basis. He gained a lot of valuable experience early this way. As a result, he was ready to step in as a starter midway through the season once Adams began missing games due to injury. The Colts will probably use Green in a similar fashion.
Again, Green’s speed is a huge asset for the Colts. Green should be able to cover the field from sideline to sideline on passing plays. However, the Colts will need to work with him on his coverage skills. He had the seventh-lowest coverage grade in FBS last season according to Pro Football Focus.
There will be a lot of pressure on Green to perform well early in 2016 because he is a second round pick. Luckily, it sounds like he is ready to embrace the challenge.
"“I’m just trying to prove what type of player I am, and what I can bring to the team. I’m just trying to be the best player I can for this team and just grow as a player and a person for this team. And just impact on the highest level that I can.”"
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While it is unfair to have high expectations for Green in 2016, the Indianapolis Colts did not draft him in the second round to sit on the bench. Hopefully, Green uses his second round label as motivation to prove to everyone that he deserved to be selected 57th overall.