INDIANAPOLIS — When Chris Ballard evaluated the Colts defense at the end of last season, trying to figure out why the promising unit he’d put together had taken a step or two back down the stretch, he identified a couple of trouble spots.
Ballard needed a wrecking ball at the 3-technique defensive tackle position, so he went out and traded for DeForest Buckner, a move that also addressed a need for more veteran leadership, an area that overlapped with the signings of defensive backs Xavier Rhodes, T.J. Carrie and Tavon Wilson, veterans the Colts hope will help fix the secondary’s tendency to give up too many explosive plays.