Colts Have 30-Visit Lined Up with Senior Bowl, Combine Standout

The Indianapolis Colts need more on the offense line. More depth. More competition. More capable players.

The position group that the Colts have seemingly done the most work on this draft cycle is the offensive line, and you can now add another name to the list as the team reportedly has an official 30-visit lined up with Sacramento State interior lineman Jackson Slater, according to Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda.

Standing at 6'2-3/4", 318 pounds, with 32.5" arms, Slater has a compact, powerful frame that indicates he's a brawler up front, but he's also quite athletic, measuring a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 9.37 after running a 5.01-second 40 and posting a 28.5" vertical, and 9' broad jump.

Slater bested those numbers recently at his pro day, improving to a 32.5" vertical, with a 4.51-second short shuttle and 7.68 three-cone. He split his position drills between guard and center and reportedly "looked outstanding."

The combine and pro day were the latest boxes for Slater to check after he stood tall and earned a solid reputation against major competition back in January at the Senior Bowl.

The Colts aren't bereft of talent up front by any means -- Bernhard Raimann and Quenton Nelson are two of the premier players at their positions, and the Colts thought highly enough of Braden Smith's prospects in 2025 to keep him around when it would've been much cheaper to release him. However, after the free-agent departures of Ryan Kelly and Will Fries, center and right guard are not yet settled, despite having some young talent there.

The Colts drafted Tanor Bortolini and Matt Goncalves in the middle rounds last year with the foresight that changes could be coming on the line, which they did. However, the Colts don't sound like they're done adding to the line this offseason.

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“We’re working through that right now, Chris (Ballard) and his staff, just looking at what’s out there, obviously, through free agency, possibly the draft," Colts head coach Shane Steichen told reporters this week at the NFL's Annual Meeting in Palm Beach, FL. "But obviously, offensive line’s a big part of it. You’ve got to be able to protect the quarterback. You’ve got to be able to run the ball really well.”

Despite liking Goncalves' versatility and what he offers, it appears the Colts might be apprehensive about moving him away from his role as swing tackle just to fill the vacancy at right guard.

“We’ve got to have flexibility inside and outside," Steichen said about Goncalves. "Matt’s had the one single snap or whatever it was inside at guard, but he’s good at tackle. We’ll explore those options.”

Despite it likely requiring somewhere around a fourth-round pick, adding a player like Slater could immediately pay dividends, as he may be expected to come in and compete right away for a role as depth or even a starter at right guard or center.