Before even playing in his first game with the Indianapolis Colts, Adonai Mitchell has a message for the rest of the NFL.
On Friday, the Colts revealed the jersey numbers for their 2024 draft class, including Mitchell, who will wear No. 10 in Indianapolis. The Texas product’s number choice isn’t an accident either, with ESPN’s Stephen Holder revealing that he chose the digits based on the number of wide receivers who were selected ahead of him in last month’s draft.
Considered by some to be a potential first-round pick, Mitchell didn’t see his name come off the board until the Colts selected him with the No. 52 overall pick in the draft’s second round. Despite his immense talent, there were reportedly concerns that he interviewed poorly with teams ahead of the draft, as well as the belief that his lack of consistency with his Type 1 diabetes medication can result in mood swings.
Fun fact: AD Mitchell’s jersey number is not random. It’s based on the number of WRs drafted before him 👊🏾 https://t.co/MBPP0MjNBH
— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) May 10, 2024
But regardless of the reasoning behind his slide, the 2023 second-team All-Big 12 selection is clearly motivated by the fact that was the 11th wide receiver selected after Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, Rome Odunze, Brian Thomas Jr., Xavier Worthy, Ricky Pearsall, Xavier Legette, Keon Coleman, Ladd McConkey and Ja’Lynn Polk were all picked ahead of him. That’s good news for Indianapolis, which finds itself counting on Mitchell to help quarterback Anthony Richardson take another step forward following a promising but injury-plagued rookie season.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.