Colts Insider grades Indy’s NFL Draft

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The 2026 NFL Draft is in the books.

The Colts had eight draft picks in the class, drafting five defensive players. All of their draft picks came from either the SEC or Big Ten.

WISH-TV Colts Insider Kevin Bowen gave the Colts a grade of a “B” for their draft.

“None of these are maybe these elite testing athletes that Chris Ballard has been prone to kind of fall in love with,” Bowen said.

“What you see is multi-year starters, again at the highest level of college football, all-conference players as well,” Bowen added.

Bowen has covered the Colts for 15 years and is a radio host for 107.5 The Fan, hosting “The Fan Morning Show.” This is his third season as WISH-TV’s Colts Insider.

Bowen said there is a higher floor with some of the players the Colts drafted than in past drafts.

“Probably the most football production that I’ve seen from a draft class of any that Chris Ballard’s had now in his 10 Colts drafts,” Bowen said.

Bowen is most impressed with former Georgia linebacker CJ Allen (the Colts second round pick) and former LSU safety A.J. Haulcy (the Colts third round draft pick). He thinks that both players will be day one starters.

He said Allen will have the biggest immediate impact from the draft class.

“First off, there’s a great track record of Georgia linebackers transitioning to the NFL,” Bowen ...