Most essential Colts, No. 8: Quenton Nelson key to building a balanced, dominant offense

In a salary-cap league like the NFL, finding building blocks is essential. As teams churn and burn the roster through the draft and bargain signings in free agency, it helps to find the players who are either a cut above the rest or can perform a task few others can. They bring security and relieve the pressure on everyone.

Over the next two weeks, we'll be ranking the 10 most essential players to the Colts' success in 2022. It's a subjective process, weighing factors such as ability, positional value within a scheme, age, leadership and durability.

To make it simpler, we're asking the following two questions about these players:

1. How difficult would he be to replace for more than a month?

2. What does the Colts' 2022 ceiling become if this player hits his?

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Today, we're on to No. 8, Quenton Nelson.

Here's the list so far:

10. Braden Smith, right tackle

9. Kenny Moore II, cornerback

8. Quenton Nelson, left guard

Position: Left guard

Age: 26

Experience: 5th NFL season, 5th with Colts

Accolades: Started 61 of 61 games, 4 Pro Bowls, 3-time First-Team All-Pro

2021 stats: Started 13 of 13 games, team finished No. 1 in rushing yards, Pro Bowl

Why he's here: The previous players on this list took a little time to find themselves and establish their level of play. Quenton Nelson needed no such thing. He showed up as the No. 6 pick in the 2018 draft and immediately settled in as a first-team All-Pro for 16 games, starting in between Anthony Castonzo and Ryan Kelly and turning the Colts' offensive line into a road-grading machine.

Nelson has since seen Castonzo retire. He's seen his quarterback, Andrew Luck, hang it up and for the cycle at that position to spin each season. All the while, Nelson has remained a dominant force at just about everything asked of a guard.

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Most essential Colts, No. 10: Braden Smith has become a steady force at right tackle

As a pass protector, he's allowed four sacks in four seasons. That's four sacks in 61 career games. He allowed just one in 13 games last year, which is impressive in part because he played through a nagging ankle injury and also because one of those 13 games came against Aaron Donald.

As a run blocker, he's become the facilitator of combo blocks and the man who winds up on highlight reels for pancakes. Among Colts offensive linemen, he is the top reason Jonathan Taylor was able to rush for 1,811 yards and 18 touchdowns last season.

Nelson is so consistently good in both facets of the game that he allows Frank Reich to dream about an offense that can go for the kill whether defenses stack the box or play two high safeties. It's the offense they were building with Luck, that has had stretches of efficient play with Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers and Carson Wentz but has been hampered by that continual spin of the wheel.

It makes him a vital piece to life with the new quarterback, Matt Ryan. A 15th-year pro, Ryan can evade lots of pressure by reading blitzes pre-snap, feeling edge rush and stepping up into the pocket and throwing quick, but what he can't do at 37 years old is scramble away from interior pressure off the snap. Nelson will allow Ryan to stand in the pocket and operate with all the experience he's built in his career.

It also makes Nelson important to whoever takes over at left tackle. If that's Bernhard Raimann, Nelson will become the best resource a rookie could ask for.

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Nelson would be higher on this list if he weren't a guard. Although the position is gaining importance with game-wrecking three-techniques like Donald prowling in the league, it's still sandwiched between two other players and can be managed if the starter is out for an extended period of time. That's simply not true with players higher on this list.

But as the Colts continue to build an identity through the trenches, Nelson has become an easy extension choice, even with the rising price of guards. He's one of the four best pure football players the Colts have.

Contact Colts insider Nate Atkins at natkins@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @NateAtkins_.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Why Quenton Nelson is No. 8 among Colts most essential players