Rock Ya-Sin can be the Indianapolis Colts’ newest star

The Indianapolis Colts make Rock Ya-Sin out of Temple their top pick in the 2019 NFL Draft (34th overall) and he looks like a future star.

The Indianapolis Colts had a middle-of-the-pack pass defense in 2018 (16th in yards allowed), but the pieces are in place for this defense to take the next step in 2019.

While Kenny Moore, Malik Hooker, Pierre Desir, and Clayton Geathers make for a strong top four, the Colts’ defensive backfield got a significant boost this offseason when they drafted Temple’s Rock Ya-Sin, one of the most physical defensive backs in the class.

The final piece of the Sam Darnold trade (selected with a pick acquired from the New York Jets), Ya-Sin emerged this past season for Temple in surprise fashion.

Ya-Sin spent the first three years of his collegiate career playing with Presbyterian, where he transferred away from after Presbyterian moved to a non-scholarship FCS conference.

He showed up at Temple in January 2018, and wound up showing out in their offseason program, immediately earning one of Temple’s coveted single digit numbers, which are annually given to the toughest players on the team.

Wearing the jersey number six, Ya-Sin balled out for Temple, racking up 47 tackles, two interceptions, and 12 pass breakups.

Now, he’s wearing the number 34 with the Colts and will have a chance to be an instant impact starter in their defense if he can win a job during camp.

The Colts have quietly made some really nice moves to upgrade their defense this offseason, and they invested heavily on that side of the ball in the 2019 NFL Draft, including making Ya-Sin their top choice overall.

The former state champion wrestler plays with great physicality, but despite having just one season of major college football under his belt, Ya-Sin doesn’t get sloppy by playing too physical.

He’s controlled in the way he attacks receivers, and he has length to make up for getting beat deep.

If Ya-Sin had put two or three years’ worth of tape together of what he did this past season, he probably would have been picked at least 20 spots higher in the NFL Draft.

The fact that the Colts were able to get him in round two is something they should be thrilled about, and they’re going to be even more thrilled with the season opens up and Ya-Sin is helping their defense get the ball back into Andrew Luck’s hands.