The Colts have signed 27-year old RB Ahmad Bradshaw to a 1-year, $1.1 million dollar deal.  He played in 14 games for the Giants last year and he carried the ball 221 times for 1,015 yards (4.6 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  He also caught 23 passes for 245 yards (10.7 avg) for the Giants last year.  Bradshaw has now played in 84 games in his first six years in the NFL and he carried the ball 921 times for 4,232 yards (4.6 ypc) with 32 TD runs.  He has also caught 132 passes for 1,087 yards (8.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs so far in his career.  This was a steal for the Colts if Bradshaw is healthy, as he is by far the best running back on the roster right now.

The Colts selected 22-year old RB Kerwynn Williams out of Utah State with the 230th overall pick (7th round) of the 2013 NFL Draft.  Williams is 5’7″, 196 pounds and he runs a 4.45 40.  Williams runs hard for a player his size and he can break arm tackles.  He is fast enough to get to the corner and get downfield.  But, he’s not much of a pass blocker due to his size and he was only a 1-year starter at Utah State.  Williams played in 13 games (all starts) at Utah State last year and he carried the ball 218 times for 1,512 yards (6.9 ypc) with 15 TD runs and he also caught 45 passes for 697 yards (15.5 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Williams played in 49 games (18 starts) in his four years at Utah State and he carried the ball 382 times for 2,515 yards (6.6 ypc) with 22 TD runs.  He also caught 64 passes for 870 yards (13.6 avg) with 5 TD grabs in college.  Williams could be an outstanding 3rd down back in 2013 and he could return some kickoffs or punts.  Williams has the ability to have a much bigger role down the road for the Colts.  I really like this pick for them.

The Colts selected 23-year old safety John Boyett out of Oregon with the 192nd overall pick (6th round) of the 2013 NFL Draft.  He is 5’9″, 205 pounds and he runs a 4.6 40.  Boyett is solid against the run and he plays faster than his timed speed on the field.  He has good ball skills, but he can’t handle covering NFL type WRs and TEs man to man.  Boyett played in 1 game (1 start) last year for Oregon (due to surgery on both knees) and he had 2 tackles and 1 interception.  Boyett played in 40 games (36 starts) in his four years in college and he had 278 tackles, 23 passes broken up and 10 interceptions.  Boyett will likely have to earn his P.T. on special teams before he gets a shot at playing any D for the Colts.

The Colts selected 23-year old DT Montori Hughes out of Tennessee-Martin with the 139th overall pick (5th round) of the 2013 NFL Draft.  Hughes is 6’4″, 322 pounds and he runs a 5.0 40.  Hughes is a big man that can push the pocket back towards the QB.  He is a good tackler and he is solid against the run.  But, he has issues off the field that led to him leaving Tennessee for Tennessee-Martin after two years.  It will also be interesting to see how Hughes handles the huge step up in competition in 2013 and beyond.  Hughes played in 11 games (all starts) at Tennessee-Martin last year and he had 42 tackles, 8.5 tackles for a loss, 4 sacks and 1 batted ball.  Hughes played in 47 games (23 starts) at Tennessee and Tennessee-Martin in which he had 109 tackles, 20.5 tackles for a loss, 6 sacks, 5 batted balls, 3 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery.  This is a boom or bust pick for the Colts.

The Indianapolis Colts selected 23-year old center Khaled Holmes out of USC with the 121st overall pick (4th round) of the 2013 NFL Draft.  Holmes is 6’3″, 308 pounds and he runs a 5.15 40.  Holmes is a solid blocker when on the move as he can hit moving targets in the run game.  He is also a solid pass blocker, but his game is quite a bit on the finesse side.  Holmes will need to get a tad meaner to excel in the NFL and it will be up to the Colts’ coaches to bring that out in him.  Holmes played in 11 games (all starts) for USC last year.  He played in 39 games (36 starts) in his four years with the Trojans.  This was a solid pick for the Colts as Holmes should be a starter for them in the near future.

The Colts have dealt 26-year old center A.Q. Shipley to the Ravens for a conditional draft pick in 2014.  Shipley played in 14 games (5 starts) for the Colts in 2012, which was his first taste of the NFL.  The Colts drafted Khaled Holmes in the 4th round of last month’s NFL Draft, which is what made Shipley expendable.  The Colts shouldn’t miss Shipley too much moving forward.

The Indianapolis Colts selected 22-year old OG Hugh Thornton out of Illinois with the #86 overall pick (3rd round) of the 2013 NFL Draft.  Thornton is 6’3″, 313 pounds and he runs a 5.25 40.  Look up nasty in the dictionary and you might very well see Thornton’s picture there.  He plays mean and he drives to drive defensive players into the ground.  Sometimes he gets too amped up, which causes him to miss some blocks.  He played in 11 games (10 starts) for Illinois last year.  He played in 42 games (35 starts) in his four years with the Illini.  Thornton will likely be a starter in the very near future….as early as opening day 2013.

The Colts have acquired 25-year old inside linebacker Kelvin Sheppard from the Buffalo Bills for 24-year old OLB Jerry Hughes.  Sheppard played in all 16 games for the Bills last year and he had 80 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed.  He has now played in 32 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has 150 tackles, 2 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 2 passes defensed.  Hughes was a disappointment in his time with the Colts.  He played in 16 games for the Colts last year and he had 41 tackles, 4 sacks, 3 tackles for a loss and 1 pass defensed.  Hughes played in 40 games in his three years with the Colts and he had 62 tackles, 5 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss and 1 pass defensed.  This was a good deal for the Bills as Sheppard gives them another solid inside linebacker for 2013 and down the road.

The Indianapolis Colts selected 23-year old DE Bjoern Werner out of Florida State with the #24 overall pick (1st round) of the 2013 NFL Draft.  Werner is 6’4″, 275 pounds and he runs a 4.75 40.  Werner has a high motor and he always seems to be moving towards the QB.  He isn’t a very agile guy, but he gets by with heart and grit.  Werner hasn’t played football that long, so he could really improve with some solid coaching up from the Colts.  Werner played in 14 games (all starts) for Florida State last year and he had 42 tackles, 18 tackles for a loss, 8 batted balls, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.  Werner played in 41 games (27 starts) in his three years with the Seminoles and he had 99 tackles, 35 tackles for a loss, 23.5 sacks, 17 batted balls, 3 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries.  This was a good pickup for the Colts as Werner will help them amp up the pass rush in 2013 and down the road.

The Colts have signed 26-year old WR Darrius Heyward-Bey to 1 -year deal.  He played in 15 games for the Raiders last year and he caught 41 passes for 606 yards (14.8 avg) with 5 TD grabs and he also carried the ball 2 times for 16 yards (8.0 ypc).  Heyward-Bey has now played in 56 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has caught 140 passes for 2,071 yards (14.8 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  Heyward-Bey has also carried the ball 8 times for 83 yards (10.4 ypc) so far in his NFL career.  Heyward-Bey has big time speed, but he also has a couple of hands made of concrete.  That being said, he will make some big plays for the Colts in 2013 due to his elite speed.