Published: April 25, 2008 12:51 am         

Colts ‘aren’t looking for the same guys everyone else is’

INDIANAPOLIS — As an organization, the Indianapolis Colts pride themselves on their success at finding the right players for their offensive and defensive systems in the NFL Draft.

The team’s first-round draft picks since 1996 has translated into 31 Pro Bowl appearances. Colts’ owner Jim Irsay attributes Indianapolis’ success rate to the hard work done by his front office staff.

Team president Bill Polian, meanwhile, simply credits the Colts’ success to hard work.

The player personnel department and the coaching staff and their “do diligence” during the year-round evaluation and draft process is the key, Polian says.

“It’s something we take a lot of pride in,” Irsay said recently. “My belief is that in the first round, you can’t afford not to get equity. You can’t afford to take a chance on zero equity. Sometimes that means taking a guy you know will be dependable rather than taking a chance.”

Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy agrees with both of his bosses. But he also points out that the Colts are willing to take players who may not fit the mold for other teams. Defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, along with safety Bob Sanders and middle linebacker Gary Brackett, certainly come to mind.

All four were downgraded by most NFL scouts due to their lack of size. The same philosophy carries over to the offense, where the Colts have had success with shorter offensive linemen who can move their feet.

“We’re not looking for the same guys everyone else is,” Dungy explains. “Offensively, if a guy, especially at the skill positions, is smart and can catch the ball, he can really fit our system.

“Our offensive linemen are smaller, more athletic guys. It really does help us not to be looking for the mold of player that maybe 80 percent of the league is. That helps us have a slightly bigger pool to choose from."

Both Freeney and Sanders have made numerous Pro Bowl appearances. Sanders was named as the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year last season. Brackett has become a reliable starter in the middle of the Colts’ defensive unit.

“We really liked Bob,” the Colts coach said. “He was probably Bill Polian’s favorite guy in that draft. We knew because he was [5-foot-8] a lot of people wouldn’t take him. He also had a little bit of a foot injury that our doctor felt wouldn’t be a problem.

“If it weren’t for that, we would have drafted him in the first round. But we moved down, knowing he was the guy we wanted but feeling we could still get him in the second round. So we gambled. We felt he was a guy who could energize our defense much like Peyton had energized the offense.”

Polian is usually considered to be ultraconservative when it comes to the annual NFL Draft:

n Go with what the team’s draft board says.

n Don’t draft for need.

n Take the best possible player available on your board, regardless of position.

But there have been times when he has been forced to go with a gut call. During the 1998 draft, the franchise was faced with selecting either quarterback Peyton Manning or Ryan Leaf. A year later, it came down (at least in the eyes of the fans and the media) to Ricky Williams or Edgerrin James.

When reminded of those back-to-back drafts, Polian has often attempted to downplay his part in the significance of those decisions.

History had shown, though, that by taking Manning and James, the foundation of the Colts’ recent run of success — including a Super Bowl title — was set.

“That [Manning] decision was tougher than you’d think, believe it or not,” Irsay recalled. “If you take yourself back to that time, you wouldn’t believe how many Leaf supporters there were.

“Probably 90 percent or more of people in the league said they’d take either one, because they’re both going to be good players. That was a consensus that turned out not to be true.”

As for the decision to take James over Williams, once again, a no-brainer. Former New Orleans coach Mike Ditka, however, tried to sway the Colts with offers of multiple draft picks for Indianapolis’ first-round selection (the number four pick overall).

“The only debate was that I talked to Bill about taking the New Orleans deal because it was so large,” Irsay said. “They offered us a boatload and that was the only debate. Ricky Williams wasn’t even on our radar. He just wasn’t. It was Edgerrin all the way."

Potential first draft pick — Indianapolis traded away its 2008 first-round draft pick to San Francisco in exchange for the 49ers’ second-round position in 2007. The Colts wound up taking former Arkansas offensive tackle Tony Ugoh, who earned himself a starter’s role as a rookie.

Now armed with the 59th overall pick (which comes later in the second round), here are some possible candidates to be on the Indianapolis draft board: UNLV defensive end Jeremy Geathers, Purdue tight end Dustin Keller, and Tennessee tight end Brad Cottam.

Geathers comes from an NFL family, with his father, uncle and cousin all being selected to NFL teams. While he is still developing as a player, his skills as a pass rusher could help him make an immediate impact with Indianapolis.

Keller and Cottam are two tight ends who could make a seamless transition to the Colts’ offense as rookies.

The former Boilermaker standout was given tapes of Indianapolis tight end Dallas Clark to study by Purdue coaches after he made the position switch from wide receiver. The athletic Keller became one of the top tight ends in the Big Ten Conference as a senior.

Cottam, meanwhile, would seemingly mesh well with another Volunteers alumnus, Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning. Tennessee’s offensive philosophy mirrors what the Colts do, which might make him an attractive selection is he still available.

The big question, thought, is whether Geathers, Keller or Cottam will still be on their draft board when it comes time for Indianapolis to make its initial pick.

Draft strategy — Will the player that the Colts are targeting be available when Indianapolis uses the 59th overall pick?

Good question. One thing is certain, however. Polian is not about to reach for a player out of a perceived need at a particular position

Indianapolis will have nine selections, but none in the first round after trading their selection to San Francisco during the 2007 draft. The Colts’ first pick is the 28th of the second round.

As in past years, Indianapolis will go into the draft with a pretty good idea of who they may want. In some years, that strategy has worked out. In other years, though, the Colts have settled for the “best available player” still on the team’s war room draft board and have come away pleased with the results.

“When you select out of a need, rather than going with the best player on your board regardless of position, the chances of success — at least in our opinion — are not as good,” Polian said prior to last year’s draft.

That philosophy is expected to once again rule the way the Colts approach this year’s player selection process. Polian has been known to work up some draft weekend trades — he’s wheeled and dealed the last five years —so that is also a definite possibility.

The sleight of hand — Indianapolis brought in a group of players to their team headquarters in recent weeks for individual meetings with player personnel officials. That’s a usual procedure for NFL teams, which are allowed to schedule pre-draft visits with as many as 30 players.

But the Colts are also good at having people visit and then not drafting them. There have been several cases in the past where Indianapolis has taken a player who, when questioned later by the media, acknowledged that they had not met with any Colts’ officials either during the combine or in the weeks prior to the draft.

What happened last week may turn out to be a good example of that. Wide receivers Mario Manningham of Michigan and Early Doucet of LSU visited the Indianapolis as part of the pre-draft evaluation process. Their presence at the team’s West 56th Street headquarters caused some pundits to wonder if the team was looking for a possible long-term replacement for veteran Marvin Harrison.

When it comes to Polian, the Colts and the draft, anything is possible. But it could also be a ruse to make other teams think that wide receiver Indianapolis is leaning with its first pick. The lesson to be learned? Don’t get too caught up in the players NFL teams, and particularly the Colts, are reportedly talking to.

In addition to Manningham and Doucet, Indianapolis has also have met with Allen Ervin, a running back from Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn., and Curtis Johnson, a defensive end/outside linebacker from Clark University in Atlanta.

Team needs — Here are the positions that would appear to be the most pressing for the Colts as they head into this weekend’s NFL Draft:

Tight end: Although backup Bryan Fletcher — a former restricted free agent — has been re-signed, depth at this position remains a concern due to the loss of restricted free agent Ben Utecht to the Cincinnati Bengals. Offensive coordinator Tom Moore enjoys employing a two-tight end formation with Dallas Clark. But after Clark and Fletcher, the depth is thin at best.

Defensive end: The Colts could use a speedy, athletic pass rusher off the edge to rotate with starters Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis. Backups Josh Thomas and Jeff Charleston are dependable in short-term use, but they lack the overall athletic skills and play-making ability of Freeney and Mathis. When both starters went down with injuries last season, the outside pass rush went with them.

Wide receiver: Given the injury problems that sidelined veteran Pro Bowl performer Marvin Harrison for most of the 2007 season and the fact that veteran backup Aaron Moorehead, an unrestricted free agent, was not re-signed, the Colts could be looking for some additional depth.

Running back: While Kenton Keith was a workable backup to starter Joseph Addai last year, Indianapolis could use a speedy, change-of-pace runner who can also be utilized as a pass receiver out of the backfield. And now that Keith has gotten himself into some off-the-field trouble — his arrest this past weekend outside an Indianapolis nightclub which resulted in misdemeanor criminal trespassing charges — the need to find a No. 2 running back may have gone from the back burner to becoming a more pressing issue.

Offensive line: Now that unrestricted free agent Jake Scott has moved on to the Tennessee Titans, former restricted free agent Dylan Gandy and veteran Charlie Johnson are expected to vie for his starting position. If Johnson makes the move to guard, the Colts might like to shore up their depth at offensive tackle.

The Colts’ draft picks — Here is Indianapolis’ 2008 draft positioning: 2nd round, 59th overall; 3rd round, 93rd overall; 4th round, 127th overall; 5th round, 161st overall; 6th round, 196th overall, 201st overall (compensatory pick), 202nd overall (compensatory pick), 205th overall (compensatory pick); 7th round, 236th pick overall.

Change in draft format — Teams will have 10 minutes to make first-round picks, seven minutes in the second round and five minutes in rounds 3-7. In past years, 15 minutes was allowed to make first-round selections.

Also, there is a time change for the proceedings. Instead of the usual noon start on Saturday, the draft will begin at 3 p.m. with the first two rounds (and ending probably some time around midnight). The final five rounds (three through seven) will begin at 10 a.m. Sunday. NFL Network and ESPN will telecast the draft live both days.