Michigan defensive end Kwity Paye has found a new home after being drafted No. 21 overall by the Indianapolis Colts in the first round of the NFL Draft.
Paye was the second defensive lineman taken in the three-day draft that began Thursday night.
With Paye’s selection, Michigan has had first-round selections each of the last three years — Devin Bush and Rashan Gary in 2019 and Cesar Ruiz in 2020. Last year, Michigan had 10 players selected in the NFL Draft, one off the program record set in 2017 when 11 Wolverines were selected.
Michigan has 11 draft-eligible players available this year and based on numerous mock drafts, eight are expected to be selected. The second and third rounds are held Friday and Rounds 4-7 are Saturday.
Former right tackle Jalen Mayfield is projected to be drafted Friday in the second round, and receiver Nico Collins could be a third-round selection during Day 2 of the NFL Draft.
During pro day at Michigan last month, Paye (6-foot-2, 261 pounds) ran a hand-timed 4.52 40-yard dash. Because there was no NFL Combine this year, scouts and coaches relied on campus pro days. Paye also bench pressed 36 reps at 225 pounds.
An injury limited his production in an already reduced 2020 season, and Paye finished with 16 tackles and two sacks. He had 23½ tackles for loss and 11½ sacks during his career.
“He’s really a freak of nature, just how big he is, how strong he is, how fast he is, a combination of all the things you would want in a D-end,” former Michigan linebacker Cam McGrone, a potential third-day draft pick, said last month referring to Paye.
ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay, earlier this month during a conference call, said Paye distinguished himself with his quickness in his first step.
“You’ve gotta get this guy up the field,” McShay said. “And the second thing that jumps out after the suddenness is his motor. There’s no Michigan player that played harder than Kwity Paye. He’s always chasing plays down from behind. He’s always giving max effort, and I love that about him.”
McShay questioned whether Paye was “used properly” in Michigan’s defense.
“I think he’s going to be a better pro than a college player,” he said. “His production was solid, it wasn’t elite. But developed properly and in the right system and turned up field all the time, he’s got a chance to be a really good pro, and I’m excited to see what he does at the next level.”
Before Pro Day, Paye shared a list of quotes he has used for motivation since he began collecting them in sixth grade. Among the quotes: “Nothing worth having comes easy” and “Nothing will get in the way of me achieving my dreams.”
“Every day I’ll pull it out and read those quotes, and I’ll be like, ‘Man, I wrote this when I was in sixth grade and now I’m accomplishing everything that I wanted to accomplish,’” Paye said. “It’s unreal, but at the same time, I worked to get here. It feels good.”
His main goal has been to take care of his mother, Agnes.
“That’s the thing I wanted to do since I was young,” Paye said. “I had seen how hard she worked, how much she struggled to get us through. Now, she’s just relaxing, she’s just chilling. It feels good to have her be with my younger brothers and raise them because at times when I was younger, she wasn’t really around, she just had to work. It just feels good.”
