GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Indianapolis Colts added star power to their offense on Thursday night by selecting Tyler Warren in the first round of the NFL Draft.
Day 2 took a decidedly more defensive bent.
The Colts used their their second-round pick (45th overall) on Ohio State edge JT Tuimoloau. Another JT–running back Jonathan Taylor–announced the selection in Green Bay. They spent their third-round pick (80th overall) on Minnesota defensive back Justin Walley.
At 6’4″ and 265 pounds, Tuimoloau started all 16 games for the national champion Buckeyes, finishing with 61 tackles, 12.5 sacks, 3 pass breakups and 2 forced fumbles. His 21.5 tackles for loss ranked third in FBS play. He was a First-Team All-Big Ten selection.
The Colts added an edge rusher last draft in UCLA’s Laiatu Latu. However, with the departure of Dayo Odeyingbo and some uncertainty surrounding Samson Ebukam’s return from an Achilles injury, the Colts used their second-round pick to add a strong pass rusher.
Tuimoloau is a powerful rusher with good size, length and toughness. The knock on him is lateral quickness, with Tuimoloau relying on his pure power to shed blocks. Still, the numbers speak for themselves and he was an important piece for Ohio State’s defense.
His versatility and toughness tend to be the kind of traits general manager Ballard looks for along the defensive line. He’s a sturdy, disruptive defender who can slide inside and shows good durability, having started 35 consecutive games at OSU from 2022 through 2024.
“I felt really fortunate to get him,” Ballard said of Tuimoloau. “There was a three-game stretch in the playoffs that he was excllent. He had 6.5 sacks against Tennessee, Texas and Notre Dame. He was outstanding,” Ballard said.
“He’s a big guy. He’s a really good athlete. He can bend. He knows how to rush. He’s got good length. We’re excited to get him,” he said.
In the third round, the Colts bolstered their defensive backfield by selecting Walley, a Second-Team All-Big Ten selection. He led the Golden Gophers with 10 passes broken up and ranked eighth in FBS with 12 passes defensed.
During his final season at Minnesota, he started 10 games, finishing with 42 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, a sack, 2 interceptions and a TD return. He missed two early-season games with a knee injury and sat out the team’s bowl game.
Walley, 5’10” and 190 pounds, played outside corner for Minnesota and ran a 4.4 40 at the NFL Combine. He had seven interceptions during his college career. He’s smaller than corners Ballard typically favors on the outside and could be a candidate for sliding inside.
“He’s got top-flight football character and [personal] character, so he’s a good fit for us,” Ballard said.
Walley is recovering from a wrist injury but Ballard expects him to be cleared for training camp. He’s been lifting weights and going through workouts despite the injury.
“Speed, toughness, instincts. He’s got good ball skills. I think he’s a really good football player,” Ballard said.
Walley’s NFL.com draft profile, while noting his experience and speed, had him projected as a sixth-round selection. Ballard said he didn’t care about such projections and was relying on the evaluations by his scouts.
Three cornerbacks went in round three before the Colts took Walley. Ballard said he felt like a run on cornerbacks was coming. He was right–after the Colts made their pick, three of the next eight selections were corners.
Walley’s selection means all three of the Colts’ draft picks so far have come from Big Ten schools.
According to Ballard, the team had a couple opportunities to trade back and pick up additional draft picks. However, he and his staff liked the players on their board and turned down those offers.
“We were really convicted about who was on the board at the time,” he said. “We had conviction to just take where we were at and move forward.”
The Colts’ positions of need include linebacker and offensive line (especially right guard). The team could also use another running back and Ballard seldom hesitates to add a defensive lineman or defensive back.
As things currently stand, the Colts have the following picks remaining:
- Round 4: Pick 15 (117 Overall)
- Round 5: Pick 14 (151 Overall)
- Round 6: Pick 13 (189 Overall)
- Round 7: Pick 16 (232 Overall)
