The Indianapolis Colts' second-round pick is considered one of the biggest misses of last year's draft.
The Indianapolis Colts find themselves in heavy need of edge rush help after the exodus of veterans Kwity Paye, Samson Ebukam, and Tyquan Lewis in free agency this offseason.
The Colts attempted to prepare themselves for this year's turnover by picking defensive end Jaylahn Tuimoloau in the second round of last year's draft, following a 12.5-sack, 21.5-tackle for loss senior campaign for Ohio State.
Unfortunately, Tuimoloau underwhelmed as a rookie, playing in just 215 snaps on defense and failing to register a sack. It's one reason the Colts conceded that their pass rush was not good enough last year.
With this year's draft nearly upon us, Matt Verderame of SI.com went down memory lane and listed his 10 biggest misses of the 2025 NFL Draft, with Tuimoloau coming in at No. 6.
"There was a thought entering draft season that Tuimoloau could be a first-round pick out of Ohio State. Instead, the Buckeye fell to the second round, where the Colts scooped him up with the idea to pair him opposite defensive end Laiatu Latu," Verderame wrote.
"Unfortunately, things didn’t turn out that way. In 13 games, Tuimoloau was a part-time player, registering only 215 defensive snaps for the season," Verderame continued. "In that action, Tuimoloau had 17 tackles with six quarterback hits but is still looking for his first NFL sack."
As Verderame mentioned, Tuimoloau played in 13 games, with a few of the absences being healthy scratches. He totaled 17 tackles, including one for loss.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tuimoloau had 14 total pressures on the quarterback in 130 pass-rush snaps, including six QB hits and eight hurries. His PRP of 5.7 ranked ninth out of 16 qualifying rookie edge defenders, and his pass-rush win rate of 9.8% was eighth.
Overall, PFF graded Tuimoloau as the eighth-best rookie edge defender out of 19 qualifying players.
While the Colts will continue to fortify the defensive end position this offseason, they haven't given up hope on Tuimoloau, repeatedly putting their support behind him when the position is discussed.
The Colts have replaced the aforementioned Ebukam and Lewis this offseason with Arden Key and Micheal Clemons, respectively, but they have yet to replace Paye. If the Colts don't find a no-doubt starting defensive end in next week's draft — they probably won't without a first-round pick — then Tuimoloau should very much be in the mix to be the new starter in Paye's spot, opposite of Laiatu Latu.