Insider: Dominoes fell and Malik Hooker dropped to Colts
INDIANAPOLIS – All it took was a trio of stunning trade-ups for quarterbacks, a run on wide receivers, a lucky break here and there and – presto – the Colts had Malik Hooker right where they wanted him.
Which is to say, falling into their collective lap at pick No. 15 in the NFL draft.
If you were surprised the All-American Ohio State safety was available for the Colts on Thursday night, you aren’t alone. You had company in coach Chuck Pagano and General Manager Chris Ballard.
This was never supposed to happen. The Colts’ projections had Hooker as a sure thing to go in the top 10 picks. And then the actual draft got underway and the utterly unpredictable series of events commenced.
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The Bears sent shockwaves by trading up for quarterback Mitchell Trubisky at No. 2, then the Titans pulled a shocker and picked receiver Corey Davis at No. 5. Meanwhile, the Chiefs traded up to get quarterback Patrick Mahomes at No. 10 and the Texans swung a deal to jump 13 spots for quarterback Deshaun Watson. Three receivers going in the top 10 (Davis, Mike Williams and John Ross) was a stunner, too.
In a draft defined by deep defensive talent, the top 12 picks featured eight offensive selections.
“I’d like to see what mock draft had three wideouts and two quarterbacks going,” Ballard joked.
What a night. What a break for the Colts.
“When (the Chargers) took Williams and Kansas City moved up to get Mahomes, I started really thinking it was a possibility to get a chance to get him,” Ballard said of Hooker.
It was not a notion Ballard thought was possible prior to the moment it actually began to unfold. So, when the Colts found themselves on the clock with one of their highest-ranked players still on the board, there was no consideration given to doing anything but picking Hooker. And the Colts had options, Ballard said, including possible trade opportunities.
“There was a lot of attention for the pick,” Ballard said. “But I just thought Malik was too unique. I’ve talked about this a few times. Unique skill sets, unique players, unique athletes that make plays. That’s what we need to keep adding to our team, especially on defense right now.”
The Colts don’t actually bother doing internal mock drafts, but they look at a broad range of mock drafts produced by others and play around with all kinds of possible scenarios. They did not come up with a realistic scenario that had Hooker still available at No. 15.
“We never thought he’d be there at 15,” Pagano said. “We thought he was top-10. Ever since we laid eyes on this kid, (we felt) he’s a rare, rare athlete.”
The sequence of unpredictable events that had to fall into place for the Colts to land Hooker was one they couldn’t conjured. It seemed the Colts have never been so happy to be wrong.
“Just look at our ball production (turnovers) last year or lack thereof,” Pagano said. “It wasn’t good enough obviously and you’ve got to be able to take the ball away. This kid can do that, returning three (interceptions) for touchdowns. You get a guy with that rare talent and that rare ability.”