A NFL team in the top 10 almost drafted Laiatu Latu before the Colts could

The Indianapolis Colts felt fortunate to land who they described as the "best pass rusher in the draft" when they selected Laiatu Latu with the 15th pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft .

But what if I told you they almost didn't even have the chance to select the UCLA pass rusher? ESPN's Jeremey Fowler shared that while the Atlanta Falcons chose quarterback Michael Penix Jr., some members of the team's scouting department liked the idea of selecting Latu at pick eight "a lot."

"Some members of the scouting staff, which Morris inherited when he was hired Jan. 25, didn't share that same level of love for Penix -- but they did like him. Those scouts liked UCLA pass rusher Laiatu Latu "a lot" as a potential option with the No. 8 overall pick, according to the source.

Instead, a pass rusher such as Latu could fill a gap for a team seeking to graduate from a rebuilding phase to contention. NFL scouts generally saw the Falcons as a team already constructed to score points on offense, with gaps to fill on defense."

- ESPN's Jeremey Fowler

It's always super intriguing to hear about alternative draft options the team considered after the fact. If Latu had gone at pick eight, who knows what the Colts would have instead done at pick 15? Maybe their top defender being off the board would push them towards being more aggressive in trading up for a player they reportedly liked a lot in TE Brock Bowers . If they stayed put at pick 15, would they have still gone edge rusher and taken Dallas Turner or Jared Verse, or would they have adjusted and taken whoever their number one CB on their board was?

Either way, I think the Colts feel good about how the 2024 NFL Draft went, especially with Latu's strong start to training camp with the starters. Only time will tell if the Falcons will regret passing on Latu to draft Penix Jr. to sit behind Kirk Cousins for the next few seasons. If I had to guess, though, I'd say that decision is going to come back to haunt them in the long run.

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