The Indianapolis Colts made their splash signing of free agency in the form of pass rusher Justin Houston, who will suit up on a new two-year contract.
As the Colts look for help in the pass rush department, Houston will be transitioning from the outside linebacker position to the defensive end position in Indy’s four-man defensive front.
While it remains to be seen how Houston will transition to playing with his hand in the dirt, metrics from Pro Football Focus support it being a seamless switch.
When lined up as a defensive end in Kansas City, Houston showed just as well as he did when he lined up as an outside linebacker. From his 414 career pass-rushing snaps as a defensive end, Houston has notched an 87.9 pass-rushing grade which ranks 11th among the 171 edge defenders with 300-plus snaps lined up as a defensive end, while Houston’s pressure rate of 17.6% and pass-rush productivity of 21.5 both rank first among the same group of players.
Houston is coming off of a season with 9.0 sacks in 12 games in the Chiefs defensive front. He was a staple in their front seven working both in coverage and rushing the passer.
Now working in the one-gap front for the Colts, Houston’s job is simple: get after the quarterback.
The Colts entered this offseason needing to add talent to the pass rush. Houston will be a force off the edge working as a defensive end and even though there might be some concern about the transition, the metrics show there’s a high chance of it working out.
