The Indianapolis Colts made a big move to upgrade their defensive line.
The Colts traded a first-round pick, No. 13 overall, to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for defensive lineman DeForest Buckner, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported.
Indy not only gave up a first-rounder for Buckner, but they also handed the former No. 7 overall pick a massive extension worth $21 million per season, Rapoport added.
The new deal makes Buckner the second-highest-paid defensive tackle in the NFL behind only Aaron Donald on a per-year basis.
The trade comes the same day that the Niners agreed to a with defensive lineman Arik Armstead. In essence, the 49ers chose to keep Armstead and get a first-rounder for Buckner, who would have been a free agent next offseason.
In Indy, Buckner becomes the centerpiece of a defensive line that needed upgrading.
"I'm always going to be obsessed with the (defensive) front," Colts GM Chris Ballard said last month, . "I just believe that that's how you win and that's how you have sustained success over time."
Buckner is a stud up front, compiling 28.5 sacks in four years. In the past two seasons, he generated 19.5 sacks, and added 2.5 more in the 2019 playoffs, including 1.5 in the . A hulking beast at 6-foot-7, Bucker is an animal in the interior, able to eat up blockers and owns the length to push the pocket into a quarterback's lap.
Employing Buckner to play in front of star linebacker Darius Leonard should immediately upgrade the Colts' interior defense.
Indy entered the NFL's negotiating window with about $68 million in cap space. Acquiring and paying Buckner should be just the start of the Colts' offseason.
