As Indianapolis Colts' scout Mike Lacy said following the 2026 NFL draft, when they were on the clock with the 78th overall pick and LSU safety AJ Haulcy was still available, that selection was a "no-brainer."

Haulcy comes to the NFL as an experienced defender, playing 2,823 snaps over four seasons, and a player who found success wherever he went, even as the competition level continued to rise.

At New Mexico in 2022, Haulcy played in 12 games and made nine starts. In 2023 at Houston, he led the team in tackles. The following season, Haulcy was an All Big-12 selection. Then in 2025, he was a first-team All-SEC defender at LSU.

"This kid, his drive, just his innate want to to compete at a higher level, and just continue to do that and produce and perform," Lacy said. "Everywhere he goes, bet on himself and earn a starting job, and obviously, pick up some accolades along the way."

Haulcy has ample experience playing both free safety and down in the box near the line of scrimmage. He's been a sound run defender by PFF's metrics and has had very good ball production in coverage, logging eight interceptions and 10 pass breakups the last two seasons.

"So, he's strong, right?" Lacy said. "He's got a compact, muscular build, but I wouldn't say -- don't let that fool you because he's got a natural feel for coverage, too. And he's quick. He can change direction. Ran very well at the combine, so we feel good about his long speed and range in the passing game, and again, I mean, he's not scared to get his nose dirty in the run game, and he's got ball production on paper that tells you he can take it away."

Adding Haulcy to the mix brings another stout coverage presence to the Colts' secondary. He is viewed as someone who can handle a variety of roles in Lou Anarumo's defense with his versatility, and Haulcy will have the opportunity to compete for the starting safety role next to Cam Bynum.

His experience in college playing in different schemes and hitting the ground running at each stop, should position Haulcy to make a quick impact with the Colts.

"A lot of snaps, a lot of exposure to different schemes, different terminology, that speaks to his football IQ, his ability to kind of get to a new environment, a new school, a new program, and pick it up like that," added Lacy. "Not, hey, you're going to be the backup until you learn it. He hit the ground running and knew what he was doing. So, feel confident about his ability to do that here with us."

This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: 2026 NFL draft: What Colts' scout had to say about AJ Haulcy pick