Massive Rookie Season Predicted for Colts’ Tight End Tyler Warren

From the moment the NFL season ended until the final second before the draft kicked off, mock drafts were flying left and right.

The wide majority of them saw former Penn State tight end Tyler Warren become the first player at his position to be selected.

The Chicago Bears stunned the NFL world when they used their No. 10 pick to select Michigan tight end Colston Loveland instead.

Only time will tell who will be considered the better player when their careers are over, but for now, the selection was a gift for the Indianapolis Colts who wasted no time selecting Warren at No. 14

The college phenom was largely considered to be a top five overall prospect in the draft, but there is a stigma about selecting tight ends with a high pick.

This fear was only emboldened when the Atlanta Falcons selected Kyle Pitts with the fourth pick back in 2021 and has been massively underwhelming considering his draft slot.

Although Warren was selected in the middle of the first round, many believe he will have a dominant rookie season.

Daniel Flick of Sports Illustrated gave his prediction for which rookies will have the best season, and he echoed a similar sentiment with Warren.

Out of all 32 players taken in the first round, Flick expects the Colts tight end to have the sixth best season.

Warren is a massive target who will be hard for NFL quarterbacks to miss, which is much needed for Indianapolis quarterback Anthony Richardson.

The John Mackey Award winner should play an enormous role in the Colts offense, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he transformed it.

The offense is currently littered with good pass catchers, but they don’t have that one elite player to open up the field for everyone else.

Luckily, Warren should be that piece and when paired with superstar running back Johnathon Taylor, the Colts have the chance to dramatically improve their offense this season.

Expert Gives Colts Surprising Offseason Grade

The Indianapolis Colts had a lot of holes to fill this offseason. After an 8-9 season where their supposed-to-be franchise quarterback Anthony Richardson did more to raise doubts than he did to provide optimism for the future (that 44.7% completion rate and the walking off the field incident in Week 8 keep coming to mind), the Colts needed to make some moves.

Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports handed out some AFC South offseason grades recently, and the Colts might want to think about forging their parents’ signature on that report card. After the initial wave of free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft, Sullivan thinks their offseason warrants a C+

While they would have had holes to fill regardless, they also had some losses which compounded the problem.

Notable losses: Offensive Lineman Will Fries, EDGE Dayo Odeyingbo, Center Ryan Kelly, Linebacker E.J. Speed, Qarterback Joe Flacco

Players retained: Offensive Tackle Braden Smith, Tight End Mo Alie-Cox

Free agency

The Colts did make a few free agent moves that should help, but no major splashes, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Breaking the bank and overpaying a guy just because you’re first to the market or because he’s the best available player at a need position doesn’t win you any Super Bowls.

Notable additions: Cornerback Charvarius Ward, Safety Camryn Bynum, Quarterback Daniel Jones

“Indy’s secondary was rough in 2024, allowing 229.4 passing yards per game during the regular season (seventh-worst in the NFL),” Sullivan writes. “Given that glaring weakness, it makes sense that it was a main emphasis during free agency, bringing in corner Charvarius Ward and safety Camryn Bynum. Their arrivals instantly raise he floor of the pass defense.”

And, as far as Dan Jones is concerned, he’s really Richardson insurance. The kind of insurance that has an untenable premium, ridiculously high deductible and doesn’t cover vision or dental.

Free agency

Notable draftees: Tight End Tyler Warren, EDGE JT Tuimoloau, Cornerback Justin Walley, Offensive Tackle Jalen Travis

“While the Colts did a good job fixing the secondary, I have some serious questions about the offensive line,” Sullivan continued. “Despite losing Ryan Kelly and Will Fries in free agency, they didn’t take a lineman until the fourth round (Jordan Travis, OT, Iowa State). Meanwhile, there is now a looming quarterback battle with Daniel Jones coming in to compete with Anthony Richardson. But if Jones actually wins the job, will the Colts truly be happy with that outcome? That means their former No. 4 overall quarterback in Richardson is a lost cause.”

The quarterback situation is cause for concern and most likely will be an issue during the season. That is, unless they were to make a move to get someone like Kirk Cousins from the Atlanta Falcons. It seems like they aren’t in on the Aaron Rodgers sweepstakes and that’s a good thing. Perhaps Riley Leonard, the quarterback they drafted from Notre Dame in the sixth round, could stand out and become a starter, but that’s really crossing your fingers and hoping for a long shot.