Armand Membou Is Rising To The Top Off Colts’ Mocks
Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images
The Indianapolis Colts have a lot of work to do before they can break their streak of four-straight playoff misses. A big part of that is going to be upgrading an offense that finished 25th in passing yards per game (197.7). For his flaws, Anthony Richardson remains a tantalizing talent, but only if the Colts can put him in a position to succeed.
That is no doubt Daniel Jeremiah’s thinking with his latest mock draft, which sees the Colts take Missouri tackle Armand Membou in the first round. Writes Jeremiah:
Membou has the tools to play right tackle, and he would be a plug-and-play starter at right guard for the Colts.
At first glance, it’s a bit of a curious pick. The Colts arguably need the most help in their secondary right now, and Membou isn’t absurd value at No. 14. His ranking on the 2025 Consensus Big Board is at 19, and drafting Membou means not taking safety Malaki Starks (No. 14 on CBB; No. 32 to the Philadelphia Eagles in Jeremiah’s mock) or cornerback Jahdae Barron (No. 26 on CBB; No. 17 to the Cincinnati Bengals in the mock). If that’s the case, can’t the Colts trade down a few picks and still probably land Membou?
No. If the Colts decide Membou is their guy, they’re not going to be able to get cute with it.
Remember — even if Membou starts out as a Will Fries replacement in Indianapolis, he still played tackle, and is projected to eventually land at tackle. That’s as premium of a position as it gets, and if anything, he’s much likelier to be off the board before No. 14 than he is to fall past the Colts. Sharp Football Analysis has Membou coming off the board at No. 9 to the New Orleans Saints. PFF has him going No. 13 overall to the Dolphins. And that draft position has been fairly stable — three weeks ago, Jeremiah’s NFL.com colleague Eric Edholm pegged him at No. 11, to the San Francisco 49ers.
So the idea is two-fold: In the short-term, Membou can solve an impending hole on the offensive line, while having a safety net for Matt Goncalves at right tackle. The third-round rookie was solid enough last season, but was a much better run-blocker (69.3 PFF Grade) than in the passing game (57.3 PFF Grade). Maybe it’s Goncalves who profiles best at guard, with Membou eventually accommodating that position change.
The question is going to be whether Membou himself can eventually make that transition. At 6-foot-3, he’s very short for a tackle, and while he’s both strong and smart, it might not matter when facing edge-rushers who have a few inches on him in terms of both height and wingspan.
Still, while Membou maybe doesn’t fill the most glaring needs Indianapolis has right now, he’s still a top prospect at a premium position who can give Richardson some help while giving the Colts the flexibility to solve some short-term problems. Should Membou fall into the Colts’ range, it’ll be interesting to see if they grab him or focus on shoring up their defense.
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