Getty NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell during the NFL draft. Will Colts opt to draft a non-QB?
Chris Ballard, general manager of the Indianapolis Colts, has a plan this offseason for his team. The plan? ‘Move heaven and earth’ to get their guy in the upcoming NFL Draft.
Ballard says he would absolutely move heaven and earth to get to No. 1 to get a QB if he’s convinced that player is the right guy.
The possibility for a trade
The Colts, coming off a record of 4-12-1, are one of the teams in the NFL facing a substantial rebuild this offseason. With expectations ahead to replace their head coach and starting quarterback, Ballard and the Colts will be looking ahead to the draft to fill their need at quarterback. With the loss on Sunday, Jan. 8, to the Houston Texans, the Colts secured their position with the fourth overall pick in the upcoming NFL draft. The draft position gives the Colts their highest pick since selecting quarterback Andrew Luck with the first overall pick in 2012. With such a high pick, the Colts have plenty of options ahead, including trading up in the upcoming draft.
If Ballard and the Colts determine a quarterback in the upcoming draft is worth trading for, expect them to pull the trigger. Looking back in NFL history, the Colts will have to give up a substantial haul to move from the fourth to first overall pick.
Expected Cost
One of the most recent blockbuster trades that have set the bar for expected cost to move up is the San Francisco 49ers trade to move up in the 2021 NFL draft. The 49ers pulled off a trade with the Miami Dolphins to move from the twelfth over all pick in the to the No. 3 pick in the draft where they selected quarterback Trey Lance.
Filed to ESPN: Dolphins trading No. 3 overall pick to the San Francisco 49ers for the No. 12 pick, a 2021 third-round pick (SF’s comp pick for Robert Saleh hiring) and first-round picks in 2022 and 2023, per sources.
Blockbuster deal with massive ramifications for years to come.
To move up to the third over all pick, the 49ers gave up their No. 12 overall pick, a 2021 third-round pick, and their first-round picks in 2022 and 2023.
The last time a team traded into the No. 1 spot in the NFL draft was in 2016, when the Los Angeles Rams traded with the Tennessee Titans to move up from the No. 15 overall pick to the number one over all pick. The Rams made the move to select quarterback Jared Goff. To move up, the Rams compensated the Titans with their 2016 first-round pick, two 2016 second-round picks and a third-round pick, and in 2017 the Rams gave up a first-round and another third-round draft pick.
One of the most notable trades in NFL history for the first overall pick came back in 2004 when the New York Giants traded up for the No. 1 pick with the then San Diego Chargers. The Giants swapped picks with the Chargers, with the Giants moving to the No. 1 pick and the Chargers moving back to pick No. 4. The Giants also gave up their 2004 third-round pick, and their 2005 first and fifth-round picks.
In the history of the NFL, the No. 1 overall draft pick has only been traded seven times and in the upcoming 2023 draft, the Colts may be the eighth team to make that swing. In his offseason press conference when asked if he would be willing to put together a package to move up to the No. 1 pick if there was a quarterback they determined worth the move, Ballard confirmed: “Yes, I’d do whatever it takes.”