When the Indianapolis Colts finished their 2024 NFL Draft at the end of April, they came out with nine total picks. Some of those picks had glaringly obvious potential, like first-round No. 15 overall pick edge rusher Laiatu Latu or the pick right after at No. 52 overall in the second round, wide receiver Adonai Mitchell. But often, when it gets past the most obvious guys, the information gets rather thin.
One of those guys that maybe no one knew a lot about was the Colts' first of two fifth-round picks, wide receiver Anthony Gould out of Oregon State.
Those fifth-rounders are where a lot of casual fans tend to lose interest, as the names just aren't as well-known. Gould could definitely fall into that category. After all, Gould wasn't even the leading receiver for the Beavers last season. He was second, though. Then again, the offense wasn't exactly catered toward the passing game as much, especially since Oregon State had one of the Pac-12's top rushers in Damien Martinez.
Nonetheless, Gould should still be considered the Colts' rookie sleeper pick from the draft, as he could be valuable to head coach Shane Steichen and Indianapolis' offense.
Fifth-round pick Anthony Gould will be the Colts' rookie sleeper in 2024
The Colts' wide receiver room is an interesting one. Their first priority once the offseason hit was to re-sign Michael Pittman Jr. to an extension, ridding him of his franchise tag. Pittman now has another three years with the Colts, making him still WR1 for the team in 2024.
After that, it's last year's third-round selection Josh Downs and Alec Pierce. Downs was solid in his first year, accruing 771 yards and two touchdowns, while Pierce had 514 yards and two touchdowns. But seeing as where Steichen came from in Philadelphia with two 1,000-plus yard receivers in AJ Brown and Devonta Smith, the head coach likely wants to see more production.
Obviously, that's where second-round pick Adonai Mitchell comes in. But it's also where Gould could contribute as well.
In 11 games last year for Oregon State, he caught 44 balls for 718 yards and two touchdowns. He ranked as the sixth-best receiver in the Pac-12 in yards per reception with 16.3 yards, per Sports-Reference.
Gould was also quite the returner in college, especially during his final two seasons. In his career, he has 26 punt returns and 22 kick returns for two touchdowns. During the 2022 season, he had two punt-return scores while averaging an FBS subdivision third best 18.3 yards per punt return.
“Obviously, he’s got the return ability, but he can do some things at wideout as well,” Colts' general manager Chris Ballard said, per Yahoo Sports. “To add that speed – he’s a 4.33 guy, another speed guy. We know Anthony [Richardson] can throw it, so it’s good to get both of those guys.”
Building this offense as much as possible to make Anthony Richardson — who is coming back in 2024 after season-ending AC joint surgery last season — comfortable and cater to him is really priority number one for Steichen. He and Ballard are likely trying to give the second-year quarterback as many valuable weapons as possible so that he doesn't have to use his legs and the rest of his body to make plays and can rather throw the ball down the field instead.
It should also be noted that with the new kickoff rules implemented by the NFL to take place during the 2024 season, teams will be putting extra emphasis on returners. So Gould could essentially be a double-helping to the Colts, at wideout and returner.
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