Colts sit tight, select best player available on draft board in Penn State tight end Tyler Warren

“I’ve been in Indy before,” Warren said. “I like (Lucas Oil) Stadium a lot and kind of the area. Just the opportunity to have a chance to play in the NFL, and if it was here, that would be awesome.”

The Indianapolis Colts secured a new weapon for head coach Shane Steichen and ultimately landed a jack-of-all-trades prospect who fit the bill all along.

The Colts selected tight end Tyler Warren with the No. 14 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. A multi-talented pass catcher, who was widely regarded as the most polished and complete tight end in this year’s draft class. Warren showcased maximum effort on each snap and excelled no matter where Penn State had him lined up at, whether it was alongside the offensive line, in the slot, out wide or in the backfield. Warren becomes a versatile weapon that fits Steichen’s run-pass-option offensive scheme like a sequin glove.

Warren played inside Lucas Oil Stadium as he led Penn State to the Big Ten Championship game in Indianapolis and the first ever College Football Playoff berth in program history. Penn State’s First-Team All-American earned the John Mackey Award in 2024, which is given to the nation’s most outstanding tight end. His 104 receptions for 1,230 receiving yards and 12 total touchdowns led his position among all Power Four conferences.

“I’ve been in Indy before,” Warren said. “I like (Lucas Oil) Stadium a lot and kind of the area. Just the opportunity to have a chance to play in the NFL, and if it was here, that would be awesome.”

Warren wrecked the Big Ten as a fifth-year senior and cemented his name in the record books with the most receiving yards by a tight end in Big Ten History and the most touchdowns by a tight end in Penn State program history. He led all Power Four conference tight ends with 693 yards after catch, 67 first downs and 19 missed tackles forced.

One of the biggest issues for the Colts last season was the inability to sustain drives on offense. Warren could emerge as a possession pass-catcher that the Colts have been missing on crucial downs. His 6-foot-5, 256-pound frame, plus an outstanding 62% contested catch rate against a miniscule 2.8% drop rate last season should give the Colts starting QB a reliable target.

Warren is a stout blocker with the athletic ability to snag catches in traffic or hurdle over defenders in the open field and at the goal line. Pro Football Focus ranked Warren as the No. 5 overall college football player, so the Colts could consider landing him at No. 14 overall the steal of the first round.

During a formal meeting with Colts executives at the NFL Scouting Combine, Warren recalled how evaluators were focused on how he discusses and processes football. After Warren left his first impression with the Colts, he revealed his thoughts on quarterback Anthony Richardson to a field of reporters inside the Indiana Convention Center.

“(Anthony Richardson) is definitely one of a kind and a heckuva athlete at the quarterback position,” Warren said. “He’s a great quarterback too, so that would be really cool.”

Last April, the Colts sat back and managed to take the first defensive player, Laiatu Latu, in the historic 2024 NFL Draft. Fast forward one year later and the Colts still sat back and claimed the top player on their draft board. After the Chicago Bears decided to draft Michigan tight end Colston Loveland with the No. 10 overall pick, Colts GM Chris Ballard felt his scouts and evaluators had the intel to sit tight and select their top choice at pick No. 14.

Ballard made it known after the 2024 season ended that the team did not get enough from its tight end unit, which ranked 31st in production. Indianapolis sought a panacea to an emanate issue at the position, since the four horsemen that the Colts cycled through at tight end combined for just 39 catches on 75 targets in 2024.

“We didn’t get enough production from them,’’ Colts GM Chris Ballard said at his end-of-season press conference in January. “I will say this, they did a very good job blocking in the run game. They’re excellent blockers, but our inability to control the middle of the field, which we have got to be able to do. I’ve got to be able to give Shane a guy that can really control the middle of the field, that teams have to account for and defend. I just haven’t been able to do that.”

If the mission for the 2025 season is to end the four-year playoff drought in the third campaign of the Steichen-era, he has all the tools to create an electric offense with the addition of the nation’s top tight end prospect. Warren features all the traits to thrive as Indy’s newest rookie that opposing defensive coordinators must prepare to face and focus on where he aligns before each snap.