Pacers are Done for the 2016 Playoffs
Despite a heroic performance from Paul George, our Indiana Pacers fell to the Toronto Raptors 89-84. The Pacers had a 17-4 run going and might have pulled off the win but with 26.9 seconds left on the clock George was driving toward the goal for a score when Raptor guard DeMar DeRozan shoved him in the back and threw him off balance. While everyone in the arena and on TV saw the flagrant foul, the officials apparently didn’t so there was no call for the Pacers. Now it’s back to the drawing board for the Pacers to prepare themselves for 2016-17. I am predicting that Golden State will repeat as NBA champions but with the Pacers out of it I really can’t say that I give a “basketball ring.”
Colts Score on Some Solid Draft Picks
The NFL Draft started a week ago Thursday and concluded Saturday afternoon. In seven rounds, 253 college players were selected. There were some serious surprises and some reliable moves from many of the teams. Quarterbacks Jared Goff and Carson Wentz were selected first and second by the LA Rams and Philadelphia Eagles respectively. The Dallas Cowboys selected Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott with the fourth pick and now Cowboy fans are convinced that they will be the Super Bowl winner next season. Southern Mississippi cornerback Kalen Reed was Mr. Irrelevant, the last player picked in the draft by the Tennessee Titans. With the trading of the first two picks, the Cleveland Browns and the Titans found themselves with more draft picks than before. The Browns had 14, the most of any team in this year’s draft. The Jacksonville Jaguars may have come away with the best draft, however. They were able to select Florida State corner Jalen Ramsey with the fifth pick. Many experts regarded Ramsey as the top prospect in the draft. With their second round pick they selected UCLA Linebacker Myles Jack. Going into the draft Jack had been considered the second best prospect in the draft, but concerns about his knees and a possible surgery dropped him out of the first round. Jacksonville discovered his knees were fine and got him to strengthen their defense. The Colts will have to be wary of the Jaguars.
For our Colts, they were able to select Alabama’s All American center Ryan Kelly. Kelly won the Rimington award as the nation’s outstanding college center with their first round pick — 18th in the order. Since the loss of Jeff Saturday, the center position for the Horseshoe has been in turmoil. Kelly will finally give the center position the solidity it needs. The Colts had six picks going into the draft but a trade with Green Bay for their second round pick position gave them the Packers’ second round pick plus extra picks in the fourth and seventh rounds. In the thirrd round the Colts picked La’ Raven Clark, an offensive tackle from Texas Tech. They will be looking at him to compete for the right tackle job. On the fifth round they selected Joe Haeg, a Little All American offensive tackle from North Dakota State. The Big Blue see him as potential starter at right guard. On the seventh round the Colts took Austin Blyth, a center from Iowa. The Colts made the offensive line a top priority in this draft. GM Ryan Grigson came through with four solid picks and hopefully better protection for Andrew Luck.
The Colts second round pick was defensive back T.J. Green from Clemson. The Colts plan on putting him at free safety behind Mike Welles so he can eventually start in the position. Green feels that he has first round talent and the Colts got a bargain with him in round two. Many experts were surprised at the pick and felt Green should have stayed in school another year to get more experience. With their fourth round picks, the Colts looked to the defense and picked Hassen Ridgeway, a defensive tackle from the University of Texas. Ridgeway will give the team depth on the defensive line. They also picked linebacker Antonio Morrison from Florida. Morrison was considered a big hitter and will compete for an inside linebacker job. Trevor Bates, an outside linebacker from Maine was taken on the seventh round. The Horseshoe is hoping he will develop into an outside pass rusher. So there is reason to be optimistic about this year’s draft for the Colts.
On Monday the Colts signed 21 undrafted free agents. More on them later.
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