Colts Swing for the Fences with Jalen Travis Selection: Film

The Indianapolis Colts grabbed an athletic offensive tackle prospect on day three of the NFL Draft.

Jan 30, 2025; Mobile, AL, USA; National team offensive lineman Jalen Travis of Iowa State (72) works against National team defensive lineman Collin Oliver of Oklahoma State (30) during Senior Bowl practice for the National team at Hancock Whitney Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images / Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

The Indianapolis Colts bolstered their offensive line in the 2025 NFL Draft, adding athletic offensive tackle Jalen Travis with the 127th pick. Travis, 23, is an experienced player who spent most of his collegiate career at Princeton. He transferred to Iowa State this past season, finishing the year allowing zero sacks for the Cyclones.

The Colts had a massive need at offensive tackle this offseason, especially with 2024 draft pick Matt Goncalves likely to move to right guard for the foreseeable future. The left side of the line is locked up with Bernhard Raimann soon to be under a long term contract, but there are major questions about the future, and even the present, at right tackle.

Veteran Braden Smith will be back for his eighth season with the team, but his status has been far from a sure thing in recent seasons. Since the 2021 season, Smith has played in just 49 of 67 possible games, nursing multiple knee injuries and personal reasons over the past four seasons of play. Behind him is former 2023 draft pick Blake Freeland, another project player who hasn't quite developed as cleanly as the Colts have hoped.

While the book isn't completely closed on Freeland, the Colts needed to at least add high-end competition for the former draft pick in camp. By grabbing Travis in this draft, the Colts not only accomplished this but also may have found their starter for the 2026 season (and beyond).

Pass Blocking Prowess

Travis put together a fantastic college career, allowing just seven sacks in over 1,100 pass blocking snaps at Iowa State and Princeton. He is an imposing player, standing at 6'8" and weighing every bit of his listed weight of 340 pounds. He also possesses outstanding length (34.5-inch arms) and explosiveness (97th percentile vertical jump and 90th percentile broad jump), giving him a near-unfair advantage over defenders in pass protection.

Travis likes to attack defenders in multiple ways and does a fantastic job of mixing his pass sets to keep defenders off balance. The Colts primarily ask their tackles to operate out of angle sets, but there is some flexibility granted to offensive tackles in this system. Travis excels on such sets, however, as his explosive first step allows him to establish position in a hurry against pass rushers off the edge. He already wins half of the battle before his matchup is even out of their stance.

Travis is an exceptionally smooth mover in his pass sets and he possesses quiet, yet powerful, steps. He hits his landmarks with ease in his drops and gets the required depth that he is looking for without wasting steps. He rarely lunges to make contact and he plays with the patience and the poise of a veteran when isolated on the edge.

Arguably, the best part of Travis' game is how much better he got at the FBS level as the season went on. In the final four games of the season, when Iowa State was pushing for a playoff spot, Travis allowed just four total pressures in his final 175 pass-blocking snaps of the season. Among 112 college offensive tackles that played at least 88 snaps in that span, Travis had the highest Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade at 91.5.

Travis has to develop proper counters to when rushers attack his blend spots, but his base level as a pass blocker is much higher than most fourth round offensive tackles. He has the explosion, the power, and the poise to be a strong pass blocker early on in the NFL.

Flashing the Hands

Travis' best moments in college aren't just from his elite footwork and explosion. He possesses outstanding hands in pass protection and even flashes a bit of diversity in his toolbox. As a massive offensive tackle, he knows that opponents want to attack him with speed to power or the long arm in order to set up speed rushes. Travis is able to fend off body contact easily due to his core, but what comes next is the real fun.

Rather than just absorbing contact and staying put, Travis makes defenders pay for leaning on his core. He developed a quick hand swipe to snatch defenders in these moments, which led to quite a few fun pancakes on film last season. Change-ups like this are always valuable to have as an offensive tackle, and Travis used this one to deliver body blows on occasion last season.

Improvements as a Run Blocker

Travis does have some limitations on film, particularly with his lack of flexibility and bend. He has found ways to mitigate this in pass protection, but there were some struggles in run blocking last season. If he was even slightly off in his angles or off in timing his strike, he could be left whiffing in the run game.

Luckily for the Colts, Travis did improve quite a bit as the season went along. He became much more confident on his backside zone blocks in Iowa State's run scheme and even began finding ways to cut off the three technique much more effectively. He leaned into his power and his torque in tight quarters and began really establishing a tone in the run game as the season went on.

He stills needs some work as a run blocker, but his growth from September of 2024 to where he was come draft time is encouraging. If he can at least become an adequate run blocker in the NFL, he has enough upside in pass protection to be an above average starting offensive tackle.

The Bottom Line

Day three of the NFL draft is typically when teams take swings on underdeveloped players in hopes of turning them into core special teamers or role players in the NFL. It's rare to find a long-term starter on day three, but the Colts have been able to find quite a few in Chris Ballard's era. It's hard to put a stamp on it at this moment, but to me, Travis feels like another one of those day-three gems for the team.

It won't be easy by any means. There is a reason why Travis slipped to day three, and it will be difficult to find ways to mitigate his stiffness going forward. That being said, there is so much to like on his film that it is tough to see him failing in the NFL. Travis has the power, the explosiveness, and the poise to be a legit starter in the NFL. Add in his outstanding character and a mind good enough to graduate with a law degree from Princeton, and I feel confident in this project working out.

Smith's future is up in the air past this season, and Freeland doesn't appear to be any closer to taking that job. With a good rookie season, Travis can establish himself as the Colts' long-term answer at right tackle going forward. In my humble opinion, I feel comfortable projecting him to develop into the player that the Colts need in 2026 (and beyond).

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