Draft History: Colts best picks starred on Super Bowl squads
The Colts franchise has appeared in seven league championship games, including four Super Bowls, and star draft picks have been involved with all of those teams. From the smash mouth football of the 1950s and ’60s to the high-powered offense of the early 2000s, the Colts have found stars both early and late in drafts. On the flip side, some of the team’s picks in the 1980s and ’90s kept Indianapolis from fielding a competitive squad.
BEST
10. Bobby Boyd, CB (Round 10, Pick 119 in 1960) – Boyd starred at three positions (quarterback, cornerback and punt returner) at Oklahoma before coming to the NFL. He holds the team record with 57 interceptions, including six or more in seven of his nine seasons and an NFL-high nine in 1964. Boyd was a three-time All-Pro, a two-time Pro Bowler and a member of the 1968 Colts squad that went to Super Bowl III. Two years later, he won a title as a member of Baltimore’s coaching staff, and he eventually went into the restaurant business with former teammate Johnny Unitas. He died of bladder cancer in 2017.
9. Reggie Wayne, WR (Round 1, Pick 30 in 2001) – The Miami product ranks second in team history with 1,070 catches, 14,345 yards and 82 touchdowns in 14 seasons with Indianapolis. The six-time Pro Bowler and 2010 All-Pro had 1,000 or more yards eight times and led the league with 1,510 in 2007. Wayne was one of the team’s main offensive focal points, and he played in four AFC Championship Games and two Super Bowls. He posted 61 yards and a score in a 29-17 win over the Bears in Super Bowl XLI. While Wayne did not get selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020, he should be enshrined in the near future.
8. Jim Parker, T/G (Round 1, Pick 8 in 1957) – Parker was an All-American and the winner of the Outland Trophy as college football’s best interior lineman, two years after winning a National Championship with Ohio State. The Hall of Famer was selected to eight straight Pro Bowls and All-Pro teams (at both tackle and guard), and he was considered by many to be the best offensive lineman of his era, especially in pass blocking. Parker won two NFL Championships with the Colts, including an overtime thriller against the Giants that has been dubbed “The Greatest Game Ever Played.”
7. Marshall Faulk, RB (Round 1, Pick 2 in 1994) – The Hall of Famer ranks third in team history with 5,320 yards and fourth with 42 touchdowns, and he was also dangerous as a receiver. Faulk was a three-time All-American at San Diego State and was the runner up to Gino Torretta in the 1992 Heisman Trophy voting. He followed his stellar college career with 1,282 yards and 11 touchdowns, earning Pro Bowl and Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 1994. In five seasons with the Colts, he went to three Pro Bowls and rushed for 1,000 or more yards four times. However, Faulk had greater success after being traded to the Rams. He won the MVP Award after leading the league with 18 touchdowns in 2000, earned Offensive Player of the Year honors three straight seasons (1999-2001), and led St. Louis to a title in Super Bowl XXXIV.
6. (tie) Robert Mathis, DE (Round 5, Pick 138 in 2003) and Dwight Freeney, DE (Round 1, Pick 11 in 2002) – The owners of the two highest sack and forced fumble totals in team history, Mathis and Freeney were a dominant one-two punch on the Colts defensive line for a decade. Mathis spent his entire career with Indianapolis, amassing 123 sacks, including a league-leading 19½ in 2013, which was his lone All-Pro season. The five-time Pro Bowler also led the NFL in forced fumbles three times, and his 17 fumbles recovered are the most among defensive players in Colts history. Mathis had three tackles and a forced fumble in a Super Bowl XLI win against the Bears, and four more stops three years later in a Super Bowl loss to the Saints. Freeney was a Syracuse product and 2001 All-American who was named to seven Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams in 11 seasons as a Colt. His 107½-sack total includes hitting double-digits seven times and posting a league-best 16 in 2004. He joined Mathis as a starter in two Super Bowls, registering two tackles and a sack against Chicago.
5. John Mackey, TE (Round 2, Pick 19 in 1963) – Mackey played every game in his nine years with Baltimore, and was one of the game’s first full-time tight ends (most others split time at fullback or wide receiver). The Syracuse product was selected to five Pro Bowls and three-straight All-Pro teams, including his best season in 1966, when he had 829 yards and nine touchdowns. The Hall of Famer also played in four league championship games and two Super Bowls. Two years after a loss to the Jets, Mackey caught a 75-yard touchdown pass from Johnny Unitas in Super Bowl V. The play stood as the longest reception in the game’s history for 10 years and helped the Colts beat the Cowboys, 16-13. One of the many players from past generations to suffer from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) due to concussion issues sustained during his career, Mackey suffered dementia later in life and died in 2011.
4. Raymond Berry, WR (Round 20, Pick 232 in 1954) – Berry actually ranks behind Wayne in all three receiving categories (he’s third in team history with 631 receptions, 9,275 yards and 68 touchdowns), but he is higher on the list due to the value of putting up those numbers after being a 20th round pick. The Hall of Famer was selected to six Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams, and he led the NFL in receptions and yards three times each and led the league in touchdowns twice. The SMU graduate overcame back and eye issues to win two championships, become one of the best receivers of his era and earn billing as one of the league’s 100 greatest players in 2019. After his playing career, Berry spent more than 20 years as a coach. He amassed a 48-39 record in six seasons as a head coach and led the Patriots to Super Bowl XX.
3. (tie) Edgerrin James, RB (Round 1, Pick 4 in 1999) and Lenny Moore, RB (Round 1, Pick 9 in 1956) – “Edge” is the team’s all-time leader with 9,226 yards and 64 touchdowns in just seven seasons with Indianapolis. He went to the Pro Bowl four times with the Colts, including his first two years, when he led the NFL in rushing (1,553 yards as a rookie and 1,709 the following season). James also won the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award and earned his only All-Pro honor in 1999. He missed out on the Super Bowl XLI trip with the Colts, but played in the game two years later as a member of the Cardinals. James was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020. Moore, even more than James, was a threat as a receiver out of the backfield. He ranked second with 63 scores and fifth with 5,174 yards on the ground, and he also is fifth in team history with 6,039 yards and 48 touchdowns receiving. After missing time in 1963 due to a knee injury, Moore responded with 584 yards and a league-high 16 touchdowns, which earned him Comeback Player of the Year and All-Pro honors. He was also voted as the league’s Most Valuable Player by his fellow players. His list of other accolades is long and distinguished: 1956 Rookie of the Year, seven Pro Bowls, five All-Pro selections, two championships, induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975 and selection on the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019. Moore’s post-career activities include working for the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services and raising money to fight the autoimmune disease Scleroderma.
2. Marvin Harrison, WR (Round 1, Pick 19 in 1996) – If there’s a receiving record for the Colts, Harrison probably holds it. Another Syracuse product, Harrison tops the franchise list with 1,102 catches and 128 touchdowns (he ranks fifth in NFL history in both categories) and 14,580 yards (ninth all-time). The Hall of Famer went to eight straight Pro Bowls (with at least 1,000 yards and 10 scores in each of those seasons), was a three-time All-Pro, and led the league in receptions and yards twice apiece. Harrison had five catches for 59 yards in a Super Bowl XLI win over the Bears. The pick that Indianapolis used to select him came in a trade for Jeff George (more on him later).
1. Peyton Manning, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1998) – The most well-known player in team history also holds many passing records. Manning ranks third in league history with 71,940 passing yards (54,828 with the Cots) and also is third with 539 touchdowns (399 with Indianapolis). He won four of his five MVP Awards with the Colts, passed for more than 4,000 yards 10 times and threw 30 or more touchdowns in six seasons. The 11-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro was also the 2004 Offensive Player of the Year and the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year winner the following season. Manning led the Colts to a pair of Super Bowls and was named the MVP of Super Bowl XLI after throwing for 247 yards and a touchdown against the Bears. He missed all of 2011 due to neck surgery, then signed with the Broncos, leading them to a title in Super Bowl 50 after setting league records with 5,477 yards and 55 touchdowns in an MVP 2013 season.
WORST
10. John Elway, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1983) – This is more of a Robert Irsay bad play than a Colts bad pick. Elway was as much of a sure thing as any recent number one overall selection. He was a two-time Pac-10 Player of the Year, a unanimous All-American and finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Herschel Walker in 1982. Elway also had a fallback plan, since he was drafted by the Yankees in the second round of the Major League Baseball Draft in 1981. As with most owners of the top pick, the Colts were not good, but they were a bigger laughingstock than most at the time. They were rumored to be moving out of Baltimore, and Frank Kush was not what you would call a “player friendly” coach. Despite Elway’s objections, the Colts drafted him anyway, and he doubled down on his desire to play baseball. Baltimore explored trade options, some of which included star players (there was talk of sending him to the 49ers for a young Joe Montana, or to San Diego for potential free agent Dan Fouts). In the end, Denver traded tackle Chris Hinton (the fourth pick), backup quarterback Mark Herrmann and a 1984 first round pick to Baltimore. Elway went on to lead the Broncos to five Super Bowls in his 16 seasons, while the Colts moved to Indianapolis a year later and went to the playoffs just three times in that span.
9. (tie) George Shaw, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1955) and Bill Vessels, RB (Round 1, Pick 2 in 1953) – Shaw had high hopes after winning two state championships in high school and earning All-American honors in football and baseball at Oregon. He started as a rookie, but suffered a broken leg in the fifth game of the 1956 season and was replaced by Johnny Unitas. Shaw started only 14 more games with the Colts, Giants, Vikings and Broncos before retiring in 1962. Vessels led Oklahoma to the National Championship in 1950 and won the Heisman Trophy two years later. Instead of joining the Colts, he decided to play in Canada with the Edmonton Eskimos. Vessels won the Most Outstanding Player Award, and his 926 rushing yards led the Western Interprovincial Football Union (later called the Western Division when the CFL came into existence in 1958). He joined the Colts for one season as a running back and kick returner in 1956, but was forced to retire due to a leg injury. After football, Vessels got into horse breeding and was president of the National Association of State Racing Commissions. His hometown of Cleveland, Oklahoma, named its high school football stadium after him
8. Jim Detwiler, RB (Round 1, Pick 20 in 1967) – Due to the AFL-NFL merger, this is the first time the 20th pick occurred in the first round. In college, Detwiler was part of Michigan’s Rose Bowl Victory over Oregon State in 1964, after his fumble cost the Wolverines a shot at the National Championship the year before. He tore his anterior cruciate ligament in college, which affected him for the rest of his playing career. Detwiler signed with the Colts after the draft, but missed the 1967 season thanks to another knee surgery. He failed to make the team the following year, and left football. Detwiler is still the last first-round pick never to play in the NFL. He went to dental school while rehabilitating after surgery and ran a dental practice in Ohio.
7. Donald Brown, RB (Round 1, Pick 27 in 2009) – Brown was an All-American and the Big East Offensive Player of the Year in 2008, but that success did not translate to the professional ranks. After becoming the first UConn player to be selected in the first round of the draft, Brown got into a running back committee with Indianapolis that included Joseph Addai and Vick Ballard. Brown totaled 2,377 yards and 17 touchdowns in five seasons before moving on to San Diego. He left the NFL in 2016. Instead of Brown, the Colts could have had six-time Pro Bowler and the decade’s leading rusher, LeSean McCoy, who the Eagles drafted with pick 53.
6. Anthony Gonzalez, WR (Round 1, Pick 32 in 2007) – The theme of the “worst” list is that quite a few players have had better careers off the football field than they did on. That is the case with Gonzalez, who had two good seasons with the Colts before suffering injuries to his knee and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) in back-to-back years. He retired in 2012, but earned his Master’s degree in Business Administration from Stanford. Gonzalez is currently a Member of the U. S. House of Representatives from Ohio’s 16th district.
5. Jeff George, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1990) – For not being on this list, Chris Hinton certainly plays a part in Colts draft history. He was traded to the Colts for John Elway, and then was moved to Atlanta along with wide receiver Andre Rison and a 1991 first round pick as part of a seven-player deal that allowed the Colts to draft George. An Illinois product and the 1985 Dial Award winner as the national high school scholar-athlete of the year, George struggled on some bad teams in Indianapolis. He posted a 14-35 record as a starter, including a 1-15 mark in 1991, but also made the All-Rookie team after throwing for 2,152 yards and 16 touchdowns. George refused to show up for the Colts in 1993 until they threatened him with a breach of contract penalty. He was traded before the 1994 Draft for first- and third-round picks in 1994 and a first-rounder two years later, which was used to select Marvin Harrison.
4. Quentin Coryatt, LB (Round 1, Pick 2 in 1992) – Imagine one team having the top two picks in an NFL Draft and missing on BOTH of them. That happened with the Colts in 1992. Coryatt was the second of those picks, earning his spot after being named the Southwest Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1991 at Texas A&M. After trading quarterback Chris Chandler to Tampa Bay for the pick, Indianapolis shored up the middle of their defense. Coryatt gave the team 8½ sacks, seven fumble recoveries, six forced fumbles and three interceptions in six seasons. He faced his share of injuries (broken wrist as a rookie, torn pec and injured left shoulder later in his tenure with the team), and the Colts waived him after reconstructive shoulder surgery in 1998. Coryatt signed with Dallas, but the shoulder continued to plague him, and he also was slowed by an Achilles injury. He was cut after one season and never returned to the NFL.
3. Trev Alberts, LB (Round 1, Pick 5 in 1994) – The Nebraska alum was an All-American in 1993, and he also took home the Dick Butkus Award and Jack Lambert Trophy for his play as a linebacker. However, Alberts played just 29 games in the NFL, with injuries setting him back. He suffered a hamstring injury and a dislocated right elbow, as well as dislocating both shoulders. Alberts retired after he was unable to return from right shoulder reconstruction surgery. He now serves as athletic director for the University of Nebraska-Omaha.
2. Art Schlichter, QB (Round 1, Pick 4 in 1982) – Much like the Redskins’ situation with Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins in 2015, Schlichter began his rookie season as the starter, but lost his spot to fourth-round pick Mike Pagel. However, his major problem was not poor play, but gambling. Schlichter’s gambling on college and professional games, while he was a player at Ohio State, was essentially covered up by the university, and the problem only got worse in the pros. He lost his entire $350,000 signing bonus, was suspended indefinitely (although he said he continued to gamble during his suspension), then the Colts cut him in 1985 due to his addiction. Schlichter’s habit eventually landed him in deeper trouble. He was arrested in 1987 for his part in a sports betting operation in New York, which resulted in NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle basically black-balling him from the league. Schlichter got fired from a Las Vegas radio station in 1994 after stealing checks from the station’s owner for gambling money. Between 1995 to 2006, he spent nearly 10 total years in 44 different prisons for the sports betting operation, as well as for fraud and passing bad checks. He also was arrested in 2011 after conning the Barney family (the heirs to the Wendy’s fast food chain) out of more than $1 million. He was sentenced to 10 years for that crime and is scheduled to be released in August.
1. Steve Emtman, DE (Round 1, Pick 1 in 1992) – Emtman’s college accolades were impressive, but that did not translate to the NFL. He was a two-time Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year, and his 1991 season also included All-American, Outland Trophy and Heisman Trophy finalist honors. However, hiis career was beset by injuries, including blowing out his left knee as a rookie, tearing his right patellar tendon and rupturing a disc in his neck. He had five sacks and a 90-yard interception return in three years with the Colts. Emtman spent time with the Dolphins and Redskins before retiring in 1997, and he is now a real estate developer in Washington state.
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