The Colts were able to draft wide receiver Adonai Mitchell with the 52nd overall pick on Friday night, which was later than Mitchell would have liked to come off the board after a productive season at Texas.
One of the reasons why 10 receivers may have been taken before Mitchell was the release of negative reports about Mitchell’s preparation and attitude that were attributed to anonymous scouts as part of the annual pre-draft flood of information. After Colts General Manager Chris Ballard ended Mitchell’s wait to enter the NFL, he delivered an impassioned rebuke of those reports.
“I read some of the bullshit that was said,” Ballard said, via Stephen Holder of ESPN.com. “Excuse my language. Our typical league — unnamed sources, bad interviews. That’s such bullshit, I mean, it fucking is. It’s bullshit. Put your name on it. I’m tired of it. We tear these young men down. These are 21-, 22-year old young men. And can people out there tell me they’re perfect in their lives? It’s crazy. It’s crap. This is a good kid. And for those reports to come out, it’s bullshit.”
Ballard conceded that “a little adversity, a little humbleness” might be a good thing for Mitchell and other young players because of how much they get built up through NIL and other things at the collegiate level, but expressed confidence that Mitchell would respond well to those things as a pro.