I recently had the pleasure of representing the Indianapolis Colts in a 32-team social media mock draft presented by Walk the Mock. 

This mock draft covered the first two rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft and allowed each team to negotiate with each other to perform trades. 

While I didn't go into the experience planning to trade back, I ended up deciding to operate this mock draft as much like GM Chris Ballard as I could. And the value I was able to get in two different trades, I believe Ballard and his team would have pounced on. 

Below are the picks I made in the two-round mock draft and the trades I completed along the way. 

To see the complete draft board and trades made, click here and choose the Colts as the team you'd like to spectate.  

Trade: 
Colts send pick 15 to the Cardinals 

Cardinals send picks 27 and 35 (2nd rounder) to the Colts

At pick 15, there were a few fan-favorite options on the board for the Colts, such as LSU WR Brian Thomas Jr., and Toledo CB Quinyon Mitchell. If I had stayed put, one of those two would have been my choice, but the offer the Arizona Cardinals sent me seemed like a deal Ballard, and the Colts couldn't turn down with so much talent in this year's class. So, I ended up moving down 12 picks in the first round and picked up the third pick in the second round to do so. 

Round 1, Pick 27: Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas

After moving back, both Thomas Jr. and Mitchell were off the board when the Colts were on the clock at pick 27. A few players I considered at this pick were: 

• Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas
• Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama 
• Chop Robinson, Edge, Penn State

Ultimately, I selected the player I believe the Colts would prioritize here, Texas WR Xavier Worthy. Worthy is known by most as the man who broke the 40-yard dash record. And while he gained fans in the draft process by doing this, he also gained haters. Due to the fact that the player who previously held the record was WR John Ross, who turned out to be a bust in the NFL. 

While I understand the fear, I think people are painting Worthy as just a straight-line runner similar to Ross, and that couldn't be further from the truth. Worthy is a legitimate deep threat who utilizes his speed in multiple ways. I believe Worthy could slide into the Colts' starting Z WR role, but I think Shane Steichen would view him as a queen piece on the chess board and have him use his speed to move in all directions on the field. 

He also would have the ability to slide into the slot at times, which could allow him, Josh Downs and even Alec Pierce to be interchangeable, depending on the play call. I believe Worthy can be a nightmare for NFL defenses to game plan for, pairing him with a young up-and-coming QB like Anthony Richardson and an innovative play-caller like Steivhen, and his ceiling as a player is even higher. 

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Round 2nd, Pick 35: Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB Alabama

My choice with the second-round pick the Colts landed in the trade-back was a fairly easy choice for me. The player I went back and forth between selecting at 27 the most with Worthy was Alabama CB Kool-Aid McKinstry, and with him still on the board, we ran that card in. At one point in the draft cycle, McKinstry was viewed as the consensus CB 1. His fall in the rankings has had little to do with himself and more so with the work other CBs have been able to put in during the draft cycle to date. 

Some view McKinstry as a safe option at CB in this draft or a "high-floor prospect." And while I think McKinstry's floor at the next level is high, I don't think he gets enough credit for how high his ceiling can be. He's one of the best pure coverage CBs in this entire draft class and has shown the ability to play at a high level in both man and zone coverage. I have a short list of four CBs in this class that I think have the potential to become lockdown CB 1's in the NFL, and McKinstry is on that list. The Colts lack of moves in the secondary has been puzzling, but if they were able to land a player like McKinstry in the second round, their patience would be rewarded.  

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Trade:
Colts send pick 46 to the Ravens

Ravens send picks 62 and 113 (4th rounder) to the Colts

Another trade, this one, I was reluctant to do at first, but there are two reasons I ended up pulling the trigger. First, there wasn't a player on the board that I was in love with to select, and second, I think it's a deal the Colts would accept in real life. The Ravens sent an offer that has the Colts moving back 16 picks in round two and picking up the 13th pick in the fourth round, now becoming the Colt's highest fourth-rounder. 

Round 2, Pick 62: Calen Bullock, S, USC

After the trade back, I saw multiple players I was interested in go off the board before my selection. When my turn came around, I knew I wanted to grab a safety if the board allowed it, and I was between two for this pick. The first was a personal favorite of mine, Minnesota's Tyler Nubin and USC's Calen Bullock. If you follow my work, you'll notice that I've mocked Nubin for the Colts for quite some time due to him being a ball hawk and having the ability to play both safety spots. But Nubin's athletic testing this offseason came in significantly lower than I was imagining, and while I think he still can be a successful player, he doesn't fit the metrics the Colts hold in a high regard.

So, while Bullock is a player I have lower on my personal board than Nubin, I firmly believe he is a better fit for what the Colts prioritize. Bullock has his cons as a prospect, his biggest being the poor tackling he displayed last season at USC. But his ability in coverage, as well as his ability to man single high coverages at a high level, is a perfect fit for the Colts opening at FS. A position Ballard himself made a point to highlight as an area they have to improve on for next season. 

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