Does Colts' Day 3 draft pick have early advantage in positional battle?
There have only been two training camp practices for the Indianapolis Colts, but one Day 3 rookie looks like he may have the upper hand in a positional battle.
While all eyes will be on the quarterback position--and understandably so--GM Chris Ballard highlighted a handful of other competitions taking place during training camp, one of which is for the swing tackle role off the bench.
Competing for that job are Blake Freeland and fourth-round pick Jalen Travis, who appear to have the advantage at this time. During Thursday's practice, Braden Smith got a vet rest day, so starting at right tackle was Travis and not Freeland.
Nothing, of course, is decided at this time, and as Joel Erickson of the Indy Star noted, perhaps the next time that one of these players needs to step in, Freeland could get the nod.
However, this is at least noteworthy.
Freeland would play 701 snaps as a rookie in 2023, but took his lumps. Last season, third-round pick Matt Goncalves overtook Freeland for the swing tackle role, and Travis is potentially doing the same.
In his 2024 season at Iowa State, Travis was one of the best offensive tackles in college football when it came to pass protection. He allowed just one sack and 11 pressures on the year, ranking 15th in PFF's pass-blocking efficiency metric.
"I think Travis has got a really good ceiling to what he's going to become in our league," Ballard said prior to training camp. "And Freeland has gotten bigger and stronger, which has been really encouraging."
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