Expert Touts Tyler Warren as 'Great Pick' for Colts

Warren immediately slots into the starting position for Indianapolis and will give Shane Steichen a worthy weapon in the short/intermediate game. ESPN's Mel Kiper calls the Colts one of the 'biggest winners' with this selection.

"He (Warren) moves all over the offense, has the strong hands to make contested plays and is simply unstoppable after the catch. He will fill a major need for Indianapolis, which managed just 467 receiving yards from its tight end room in 2024."

The Colts didn't have much from Kylen Granson, Mo Alie-Cox, Drew Ogletree, or Will Mallory, with the group mustering a rough 39 catches as a foursome. This wasn't remotely acceptable, regardless of Anthony Richardson's struggles as a passer.

Hence, the Warren selection holds so much value. Kiper continues.

"Warren will stretch the seams and catch some Richardson deep balls, but he will also eat up targets underneath and turn them into first downs. Great pick."

Warren won the Mackey Award in 2024 and caught an impressive 104 passes for 1,233 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. He was also serviceable as a blocker per Pro Football Focus, notching a 52.8 run-blocking grade on 407 running snaps.

Warren has the potential to thrive in Steichen's offense and further the impact of playmakers like Josh Downs, Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce, and bell-cow back Jonathan Taylor as soon as the 2025 season.

Anthony Richardson needs all the help he can get to succeed. If he indeed does start under center over Daniel Jones, the latter of whom was signed on a one-year deal to compete, then Warren will be integral to helping Richardson with targets and short throws. While Richardson is talented, he has had issues with the gimme throws more than the downfield shots.

This is the pick Indy needed, and Chris Ballard made it happen by doing nothing but sitting at 14th overall so Warren could fall into their lap. We'll see how things shake out for day two of the NFL draft later.