INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Colts didn’t have a first-round pick when the NFL Draft began Thursday, but don’t tell Sauce Gardner that.
“I’m the first-round pick,” the star cornerback said Tuesday during the Colts’ OTAs. “Twice.”
Gardner’s joke referenced the Colts’ mega-trade that sent him to Indianapolis last November. The Colts, amid a 7-2 start, in 2025, went all in and sent the New York Jets their 2026 and 2027 first-round picks, plus wide receiver AD Mitchell, to acquire Gardner. The 24-year-old is already a two-time first-team All-Pro. The only cornerback in Colts history to earn at least two first-team All-Pro nods was Bobby Boyd — in the 1960s.
“It ain’t no pressure,” Gardner said of the Colts’ investment in him. “… If I gotta be the first-round pick the next two years, I’m gonna work regardless, (even) if that wasn’t the case. It’s already a lot on my plate being me, but it ain’t nothing that I can’t handle.”
The Colts currently have seven picks in this year’s draft, with two on Day 2 (Nos. 47 and 78). Colts GM Chris Ballard initially stated during his pre-draft news conference Monday that the team would be “aggressive” in moving around the draft board, but he later hinted that Indianapolis was much more likely to trade back than to trade up.
“Don’t misconstrue (being) aggressive for moving up,” Ballard said. “To me, being aggressive can also be moving back and then moving around and acquiring more picks and then moving it.”
Now, after a quiet Day 1, the Colts have the opportunity to put Ballard’s philosophy to the test on Day 2. The last time Indianapolis didn’t have a first-round pick was in 2022, and the team traded back with the Minnesota Vikings. The Colts sent the Vikings the Nos. 42 and 122 picks in exchange for the Nos. 53, 77 and 192 selections. Those three picks were eventually used on wide receiver Alec Pierce, tight end Jelani Woods and left tackle Bernhard Raimann, respectively.
Woods wound up being a miss, as injuries limited him to just 15 games in his first three years in Indy before he was waived. But Pierce and Raimann have turned into Colts cornerstones, evidenced by the massive contracts they’ve signed in back-to-back years. Raimann inked a four-year, $100 million extension last year that solidified him as Indy’s left tackle of the future. Pierce signed a four-year, $114 million deal last month that made him the 12th-highest paid receiver in the NFL based on annual average.
Can the Colts strike gold again in this year’s draft? They’ve certainly raised the stakes after parting ways with five starters from last year and potentially six if cornerback Kenny Moore II’s trade request is fulfilled. Of that group, the only surefire starter the Colts have already identified is right tackle Jalen Travis, who’ll replace Braden Smith after Smith joined the Houston Texans in free agency. Travis started the last four games of the 2025 season while Smith was sidelined due to a neck injury and concussion, so it was easy to project him as the starter in 2026.
Indianapolis still has glaring holes, particularly at defensive end and linebacker. Kwity Paye, who started opposite of 2024 first-round pick Laiatu Latu at defensive end last season, joined the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency. Zaire Franklin, the Colts’ starting middle linebacker for the last four years, was traded to the Green Bay Packers. Ballard believes this year’s draft has good depth at linebacker and defensive end, and it would behoove Indianapolis to find at least one starter at either position.
“Athleticism, speed, ability to play on three downs are always kind of what we’re looking for at linebacker,” Ballard said. “At (defensive) end, it’s changed a little bit. … With (former Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus), it was all about let’s get as many speed guys as we can on the field. With (current DC Lou Anarumo), the element of power is important. I do think adding a fastball is kind of what we need, but I’m not eliminating the other guys.”
Of course, the draft can still be very unpredictable, especially without a first-round pick. But the Colts haven’t given themselves much room for error or excuses. Indianapolis is trying to end a five-year playoff drought as Ballard, in his 10th season at the helm, enters the final year of his contract. The pressure is on to deliver.
“I always laugh when people say it’s a bad draft,” Ballard said, pushing back on some of the criticism of this year’s class. “I don’t ever believe that. (I) always feel that there’s players at every level of the draft, and it’s our job to go find them.”
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