KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Indianapolis Colts have been cycling through veteran quarterbacks the last few seasons since the surprise retirement of Andrew Luck in 2019.
But this year, the team has a top-five pick in the NFL Draft, and a chance to select the new face of the franchise in front of fans in Kansas City. That’s what one fan who spoke to KSHB 41 says he is hoping to see.
"At the end of the day, whomever we get on the fourth pick, I’m going to back them up 100%," Joe Camacho said.
You wouldn't know it by looking at Camacho's fan-cave full of autographed Indianapolis Colts memorabilia, but he actually lives in Houston.
He's been to Kansas City for a football game and has big plans to attend the 2023 draft.
"I booked my room, my hotel and all, and all of a sudden I received an email from the Colts event committee, inviting me to the draft," Camacho said.
That e-mail from the Colts detailed the team’s offer to send Camacho to the draft, almost free of charge.
"They're taking the tab on the event, the hotel, the airfare and per diem, so I couldn't pass it up, it was a dream come true," Camacho said. "There's an after-draft party that I’ll be attending, I just purchased the tickets a couple of weeks ago, it's like a tailgating type-deal, it's going to go on most of the night, it's supposed to be at Union Station."
A representative from the Colts told KSHB 41 that there's a good chance Camacho will get to see his favorite team’s new quarterback in person.
"The expectation is that the Colts will take a quarterback with the fourth overall pick,” JJ Stankevitz, Indianapolis Colts writer and public address announcer, said. “Maybe they trade up with Arizona for the third pick. But that's not a guarantee."
And there will even be some KC love from that Colts employee to meet him when he gets here.
"I love Kansas City,” Stankevitz said. “I went to Mizzou, I love the city. I'm encouraging anyone I know here in Indianapolis to get out there, get yourself a Boulevard (beer), get yourself a Z-man."
