Colts Get a Steal With Bethea in Sixth

He was rated as high as a third-rounder, so when the Colts selected Howard University's Antoine Bethea late in the sixth-round, they walked away with one of the steals of the 2006 draft.

As the 2006 NFL Draft progressed, teams overlooked talented free safety Antoine Bethea out of Howard University.

But the Colts kept their eye on him. They were plenty familiar with the Howard University standout who led his team in tackles for the past three seasons. And after they addressed a need for more offensive line depth, they grabbed Bethea with their final pick, a compensatory draft selection. The Colts were awarded that pick due to the free agency loss of Rick DeMulling last year to Detroit.

Earlier this month, ColtPower was the first source to report that Bethea had a visit planned with the Colts. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound safety had a stellar Combine performance, posting a personal-best 4.39-second forty and 19 reps on the 225-pound bench press. Here are the links to the articles we did on Antoine in conjunction with his visit:

Colts Hot Prospect: Safety Antoine Bethea

Colts Hot Prospect Q&A: Antoine Bethea