{"id":216990,"date":"2025-02-16T15:15:46","date_gmt":"2025-02-16T20:15:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=216990"},"modified":"2025-02-15T21:23:11","modified_gmt":"2025-02-16T02:23:11","slug":"indianapolis-colts-should-not-mock-draft-kenneth-grant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/02\/16\/indianapolis-colts-should-not-mock-draft-kenneth-grant\/","title":{"rendered":"No, the Colts Should Not Draft First-Round Defensive Tackle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Indianapolis Colts hold the 14th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. CBS analyst Mike Renner<\/a> put together an NFL Mock Draft recently and has the Colts taking Michigan defensive lineman Kenneth Grant in the first round:<\/p>\n

“Chris Ballard is a traits-based drafter, and you won’t find too many prospects with better traits in this draft than Kenneth Grant,” wrote Renner. “He’s a mammoth defensive tackle who moves like a 3-technique and is only scratching the surface of his potential.”<\/p>\n

Most Colts mock drafts have the team taking either a tight end or defensive back with the 14th overall pick. However, it wouldn\u2019t be shocking if general manager Chris Ballard<\/a> took a defensive tackle like Kenneth Grant instead. Last year, the Colts were expected to take a cornerback or wide receiver with the 15th overall pick. Yet, Ballard opted for defensive end Laiatu Latu<\/a>. Will Kenneth Grant head to Indy this April?<\/p>\n

No, the Colts Should Not Draft Defensive Tackle Kenneth Grant in the First Round<\/h2>\n

Kenneth Grant\u2019s Career<\/h3>\n

Kenneth Grant starred at Merrillville High School in Merrillville, Indiana. During his senior year, he recorded 38 tackles (14.5 tackles for loss), 6.5 sacks and blocked eight kicks. He also led the school to an undefeated regular season.\u00a0<\/sup><\/p>\n

Grant then took his talents to the University of Michigan. During his second season with the Wolverines, he produced 29 tackles, five tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks, an interception, a fumble recovery, and five pass breakups. Grant was named a second-team All-Big Ten selection that year. But more importantly, he teamed with quarterback J.J. McCarthy<\/a> and Co. to lead the Wolverines to a national championship. They knocked off Washington 34-13<\/a> in the championship game. It was Michigan\u2019s first title since 1997.<\/p>\n

Last season, Kenneth Grant recorded five pass breakups, 32 tackles, 6.5 tackles for a loss, three sacks, three quarterback hurries, and two fumble recoveries. He received second-team All-Big Ten honors once again and was selected as a third-team All-American. Grant then declared for the NFL Draft, foregoing his senior season.<\/p>\n

Does Drafting Him Make Sense?<\/h3>\n

Nothing against Kenneth Grant, but the Colts shouldn\u2019t draft him. The six-foot-three, 340-pounder could certainly develop into a star NFL defensive tackle. Yet, Indianapolis needs to use the 14th overall pick on either a tight end or defensive back.<\/p>\n

Penn State\u2019s Tyler Warren just might be the perfect pick<\/a> for the Colts. It seems like he is linked to most Colts mock drafts. Considered the top tight end prospect in this year\u2019s draft, Warren could be a go-to weapon for quarterback Anthony Richardson<\/a>. He would be a major upgrade over any of the tight ends the Colts employed in 2024.<\/p>\n

Georgia safety Malaki Starks<\/a> would also be a great selection for the Colts at No. 14. The secondary is one of Indy\u2019s biggest weaknesses and Julian Blackmon could leave as a free agent this offseason. Starks and Nick Cross could form an intriguing safety duo for years to come.<\/p>\n

As mentioned before, it won\u2019t be surprising at all if Ballard drafts Kenneth Grant. But it wouldn\u2019t make sense for the Colts, who aren\u2019t in desperate need of a defensive tackle.<\/p>\n

Main Photo: Kyle Robertson – Imagn Images<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An NFL Mock Draft has the Indianapolis Colts selecting Michigan defensive tackle Kenneth Grant 14th overall.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4890,"featured_media":217209,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12,54,1647],"tags":[7800,33238,32971,33015],"class_list":["post-216990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colts","category-editorials","category-nfl-draft","tag-indianapolis-colts-news","tag-kenneth-grant","tag-malaki-starks","tag-tyler-warren"],"modified_by":"David Latham, Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4890"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=216990"}],"version-history":[{"count":44,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216990\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":217210,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216990\/revisions\/217210"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/217209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=216990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=216990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=216990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}