In 2020, the San Francisco 49er’s shocked the NFL world in trading their All-Pro defensive tackle, DeForest Buckner, to the Indianapolis Colts. A Colts team desperate for an upgrade at nose tackle shipped off their 2020 first round pick (No. 13 overall) for Buckner in the hopes that he would significantly bolster an underwhelming defensive front. Since that trade, DeForest Buckner has been one of the best performing defensive tackles in the league, leading the Colts in sacks in his two years there. However, one has to wonder what it means if your nose tackle is consistently putting up more sacks than your edge rushers.
Taking a Gamble
During the 2021 offseason the Colts took a risk in letting multiple defensive lineman walk in free agency. Interior defensive lineman Denico Autry and Pro-Bowl edge rusher Justin Houston signed deals with the Tennessee Titans and the Baltimore Ravens, respectively. Both Autry and Houston recorded over seven sacks during the 2020 season, making them the second and third best performers for the team in that category. Unfortunately, the Colts did little to make up for that last offseason. Indianapolis GM Chris Ballard decided to take a chance on letting rookie Kwity Paye attempt to fill that void. Paye did end up having a productive season down the stretch. However, the Colts turned out underwhelming results with a pass rush win rate of 36% according to ESPN’s rankings. That ranked 24th in the league. On the plus side, Paye is listed as one of 2022’s potential breakout candidates.
Offseason Upgrades
While the Colts are high on Paye, there’s still the other side of the line to address. Bring in Yannick Ngakoue. Back in March, the Colts traded cornerback Rock Ya-sin to the Las Vegas Raiders for Ngakoue. Since being drafted in 2016, Ngakoue has totaled 55.5 sacks. That’s more than the entire Colts defense for 2020 and 2021 which was only 53. Granted, Ngakoue did that in five years compared to Indianapolis’s two, but it’s still a glaring statistic. The Colts are hopeful he will bring a much needed oomph in that category.
What it means for Buckner
Due to the Colts lack of an effective pass rush opponents have focused much of their blocking efforts on Buckner alone. However, with the addition of Ngakoue and a projected second year jump from Paye, opposing teams may not be able to double team Buckner as often as they like. Ideally, Buckner will not have to lead his team in sacks this year. If Indianapolis no longer has to rely on Buckner carrying their defensive efforts he’ll be open to dominate offensive fronts. With attention switching to back the Colts edges, don’t be surprised to see Buckner produce an All-Pro worthy stat-line in 2022.
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