Two NFL front office members offered high praise for Colts’ DT DeForest Buckner.
As you can guess, personnel members around the NFL think very highly of Indianapolis Colts’ defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler recently spoke to league executives, coaches, and scouts to compile his list of the top 10 defensive tackles ahead of the 2025 NFL season. Coming in at No. 8 was Buckner.
Here is what one exec had to say about Buckner:
“The most underrated defensive player in the league,” a high-ranking AFC personnel exec told Fowler.
A talent evaluator then had this to say about Buckner’s game:
“His game will age well because of his length, technique and high motor,” an NFL personnel evaluator told Fowler.
Buckner would miss five games last season with an ankle injury, but he continues to play at a high level. Despite the missed time, he was still third on the Colts in quarterback pressures, and compared to his position group league-wide, Buckner was seventh in pass rush win rate, 12th in pass rush productivity, and ninth in run-stop rate, according to PFF.
For the most part, as Buckner goes, the Colts’ defensive line goes. Beyond filling the column on his own stat sheet, Buckner’s presence on the field–with the attention he draws and mismatches helps create–makes everyone around him better as well, as the numbers from last season indicate.