Historically, NFL teams have rarely shied away from developing players with slight character concerns. By that token, the Indianapolis Colts recently made headlines for drafting Texas wideout Adonai Mitchell, who has been called “un-coachable” by anonymous sources.
Ballard spoke further about the 6-foot-4, 196-pound target on Tuesday, via The Pat McAfee Show.
“We do our own work and I'm not going to let the outside noise dictate what we do and who we take and who we draft,” Ballard said. “I have a lot of faith in our scouts and the work they've done, our coaches in the work they've done. Look, not everybody when you're 20, 21, 22, years old is perfect. I mean we've all done some things in our lives, and it's you know the young men that come in this league they got a lot of pressure already and you know it's our job to help them grow up.”
Mitchell had been criticized by evaluators for being moody due to his Type 1 Diabetes. Ballard is more interested in helping players develop as people rather than anonymously tearing them down,
“I mean it's one of the things that I mean we do take pride in is with our players that we're going to help them develop not only as players but also off the field to be the best men they can be, best husbands they can be, best in their communities. so that it's deeper than just being the best player you can be,” Ballard continued.
How will Mitchell's Colts tenure turn out? Will he develop into a fine player and person, or will his supposed character issues be too much to overcome?
Adonai Mitchell has all the tools to succeed with the Colts
Mitchell enjoyed a productive 2023 campaign, leading the Longhorns with 11 receiving touchdowns. The Second-Team All-Big 12 honoree also recorded 55 receptions with 845 yards across 14 games.
Mitchell was graded as a first-round talent, via NFL.com's Lance Zierlein. However, he fell to the back half of the second before Indianapolis snagged him at 52nd overall, most likely due to the aforementioned character concerns.
“Ascending prospect with size, speed, and ball skills to become a very good NFL receiver, but he’s still in the process of bridging those traits,” said Zierlein.”The difference between becoming a WR2 or WR1 could rest on his urgency and willingness to go to work on the unpolished areas of his craft.”
Zierlein also mentioned that Mitchell needs to work on his route running and run blocking, just like many young receivers. However, this can be worked on over time and there is no reason to write off his potential.
The Missouri City, Texas native's weak points both on and off the field are far from insurmountable. As Ballard said, draft prospects are young adults with an intense spotlight on them. While some resort to criticizing them anonymously, other organizations take them in with open arms, investing in their development as people and players. If Mitchell lives up to his draft status, he could form a formidable partnership with second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson.
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