The mostly-silent, always-steady backbone behind the Indianapolis Colts’ most successful era was comprised of two players who went undrafted (Jeff Saturday and Ryan Lilja), a fourth-round draft pick (Ryan Diem) and a fifth-rounder (Jake Scott).
Only one of the five members of the offensive line that protected Peyton Manning so well and so long – left tackle Tarik Glenn – heard his name called in the first three rounds of the draft.
There’s a lesson in this: An elite line doesn’t always have to be built with stars. What is required – production, consistency, unselfishness – are traits found in players both highly-touted and largely overlooked.