Texas Football: Sam Ehlinger can be the change the Colts need
A longer than originally anticipated wait for the former star senior Texas football quarterback Sam Ehlinger to hear his name called in the 2021 NFL Draft finally ended on the late afternoon of May 1. It did take until later in the day on May 1 for the hometown product Ehlinger to hear his name called in this draft.
The team that ended the wait for Ehlinger to hear his name called in the weekend festivities of this year’s draft was the Indianapolis Colts out of the AFC South. In the sixth round, the Colts picked up Ehlinger with the 218th overall pick. It was the first quarterback off of the board for the Colts in this draft and might be the only one when it’s all said and done.
Ehlinger could come in right away and compete for a backup role with the Colts and head coach Frank Reich behind the former North Dakota State Bison signal caller Carson Wentz. That is the main storyline that will be hanging over Ehlinger and the remainder of the Colts offseason.
The 6-foot-3 and 225 pound Ehlinger will also join former Georgia Bulldogs and Washington Huskies quarterback Jacob Eason in the Colts quarterback room along with Wentz and Jalen Morton.
Colts could have a new backup QB in Texas football Ex Sam Ehlinger
After having the former NC State Wolfpack and San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers leading the way last year, the Colts are taking to a much different direction to lead the offense in 2021. Wentz and Ehlinger both have a lot more mobility than Rivers ever did.
And Ehlinger adds a lot of versatility for the Colts since he can play in a number of different offensive packages. Texas developed the arm talent of Ehlinger in the last three years on intermediate and deep balls. The Colts can now take on his development to find more consistent accuracy at all levels of the field in the passing game, and utilize his dual-threat ability effectively.
During his four years playing for Texas, Ehlinger registered nearly 11,500 passing yards, a 62.5 completion percentage, 8.2 adjusted yards per passing attempt, 145.0 passer efficiency rating, 94 passing touchdowns, and 27 interceptions. He also added just under 2,000 rushing yards and 33 rushing scores.
That aforementioned dual-threat ability and overall toughness that Ehlinger carries with him will help establish a niche for himself in this Colts quarterback room. It’s also nice to see the former Longhorns quarterback land with a team that has a storied run at the position in the past two decades.
Next. 3 former Aggies to pursue in the transfer portal. dark
There are now five former Longhorns that have fallen off of the board in the 2021 NFL Draft, now in the midst of the seventh and final round. The other four included offensive tackle Samuel Cosmi to the Washington Football Team in the second round, edge rusher Joseph Ossai to the Cincinnati Bengals in the third round, and defensive end Ta’Quon Graham to the Atlanta Falcons, and safety Caden Sterns to the Denver Broncos both in the fifth round.