Senior Bowl prospects Indianapolis Colts should target in 2021 NFL Draft

Patrick Jones II, EDGE, Pittsburgh

Aside from the obvious needs at quarterback and offensive tackle, edge rusher needs to be near the top of the list for the Indianapolis Colts. Even though there’s still hope for players like Kemoko Turay and Ben Banogu to keep developing, Turay has only played in 11 games the last two seasons, and Banogu hasn’t carved out much of a role to this point.

This class of defensive ends and outside linebackers has been gaining steam recently, and the Pittsburgh Panthers have two that are slowly raising their draft stock. One of those is Patrick Jones II.

Jones is the type of player the Colts desperately need on the edge. His quickness out of his stance and effective first step had many turning heads during the 2020 college season. His bend and burst around the arc are impressive as well. On top of it, Jones possesses the length and athleticism to mix up his counters and hold up against the run.

The production is there (17.5 sacks and 24 tackles for loss his past two seasons) for him to be a top 40 pick, but the depth could push him down a little. While his Senior Bowl week wasn’t the best in the practices, Jones showed up big during the game. If the Colts don’t select him in round one, they should be all in for this prospect in round two.