INDIANAPOLIS -- The need for two starting safeties began almost a month before the Indianapolis Colts released LaRon Landry on Feb. 11. It began once their season ended with a loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game: Veteran Pro Bowler Mike Adams was about to become a free agent, and it was no secret that the Colts had planned to release Landry after two disappointing seasons.
Sergio Brown, who started eight games last season after being primarily a special teams player for most of his career, is also a free agent.
"Obviously it could be a position of need if you look on paper," coach Chuck Pagano said. "There's a bunch of guys out there in free agency that we could take a look at. There's a bunch of guys here at the draft obviously that we'll evaluate. We've got guys on the team that are more than capable. I'm confident that we'll be fine at the spot."
Adams and the Colts have both expressed interest in him re-signing with the team. Adams, who went from not having a team early last June to tying for the NFL lead in takeaways with seven, likely won't be the "quarterback" of their secondary five years from now.
"We would love to have Mike back," general manager Ryan Grigson said. "Obviously a June signing that goes to the Pro Bowl is a good thing ... You want to try and solidify every position group when you are trying to win the Super Bowl. When you have the bar set like that, you look at all your needs across the board. It's like, 'Wow, we need help everywhere.' And that's at every position."
Indianapolis has to get younger at that position. The draft is the ideal way to do that, but the safety class this year is not deep. ESPN's Todd McShay said this week that he believes Alabama's Landon Collins will be the only safety taken in the first round. He ran the second fastest 40-yard dash (4.53 seconds) at the combine last week. Mississippi State's Justin Cox ran a 4.36.
Collins called himself a "box safety" who can also drop back into coverage, which is a good thing because Pagano likes for his safeties to be interchangeable in his defense. Collins is a big fan of the Seattle Seahawks' Kam Chancellor and he also idolizes the late Sean Taylor. Collins, who wears No. 26 in honor of Taylor, watches YouTube videos on the night before every game.
"[In Chancellor] you've got a big safety who people say can't move," Collins said "Can't do this, can't do that, can't cover the middle of the field. And he shows that when he has the opportunity to do that, people fear him. That's what we like to do."
Collins would fill a void the Colts need, but he'll likely be gone by the time they pick at No. 29 in the first round. They would have to hope he falls or trade up to acquire him.
Here's a look at other safeties that may intrigue the Colts later in the draft:
Gerod Holliman, Louisville: 14 interceptions
Derron Smith, Fresno State: 89 tackles
Damarious Randall, Arizona State: 106 tackles, three interceptions
Durell Eskridge, Syracuse: 68 tackles