Rookie edge defender and third-round pick Tarell Basham comes to the Indianapolis Colts off a standout college career, during which he had 152 tackles, 38.5 tackles-for-loss and 27 sacks while holding down a starting job all four of his seasons at Ohio University.  Some felt Basham was a steal for the Colts at pick 80, and based on his time in the offseason program, it sounds like Colts coaches like what they see so far in their young pass rusher. 

"As you look at things on tape and you look at things on the field, in shorts, you see an explosive, loose athlete," defensive coordinator Ted Monachino said last week, per Colts.com. 

The description matches what scouts thought of Basham coming into the draft -- an player with noticeable burst and explosion off the line.  After watching him in practice, Monachino thinks Basham can be of help against both the run and the pass. 

"I think that we can predict that he’s going to do several things well," Monachino said. " He’s going to be physical and have a little violence on the edge of the run game.  We can see that he can win late in the down with some power in the pass rush.  He’s also slippery enough that he can win early in the down which is good." 

The Colts headed into the offseason with a heavy need for edge defenders, which they filled by signing John Simon, Jabaal Sheard and Barkevious Mingo in free agency and then adding Basham in the draft.  For much of the pre-draft process it was thought the Colts might decide to use their first round pick on an edge player, but they still may have landed a key defensive piece in Basham anyway despite waiting until Round 3.  Basham should be able to grow into at least a rotational player this season behind Simon and Sheard, with potential to do much more down the line. 

"We’ve got very high expectations for him, but not as high as he has for himself," Monachino said. " I think that from the day he got here, he’s been focused on his diet, on his activity level, on learning the system and fitting in with his teammates.  And he’s doing a good job in all those areas.”