{"id":761795,"date":"2026-02-19T06:13:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T06:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/761795\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T06:13:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T06:13:15","slug":"2-high-value-free-agent-linebackers-for-colts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/761795\/","title":{"rendered":"2 high value free agent linebackers for Colts"},"content":{"rendered":"

Feb. 18, 2026, 9:10 p.m. ET<\/p>\n

With linebacker being an offseason need for the Indianapolis Colts<\/a>, NFL.com<\/a> recently highlighted a pair of free agent linebackers who could be “underpriced” on the open market.<\/p>\n

The reason that linebacker is a need for the Colts<\/a> is twofold. For one, depth is needed. Behind Zaire Franklin on the depth chart, there is very little NFL experience.<\/p>\n

However, in addition to that, an added coverage presence is a must as well. GM Chris Ballard mentioned the need to get younger and faster on defense this offseason, and while he didn’t specifically bring up the linebacker position, that sentiment very much applies to that position.<\/p>\n

So, which two free agents could be underpriced this offseason? Kevin Patra put Nakobe Dean and Leo Chenal into that category.<\/p>\n

Dean has been an effective blitzer and a mostly sound tackler in his career. In coverage, he’s allowed 11.6 yards per catch over his career with an interception and three pass breakups over the last two seasons.<\/p>\n

Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.<\/a><\/p>\n

“The former third-round pick owns the type of athleticism and playmaking that could get him paid this offseason,” wrote Patra. “In four seasons in Philly, the off-ball linebacker proved he could get after the quarterback (7.5 sacks) and patrol the middle of the field. However, an extensive injury history could curtail his payday.”<\/p>\n

Chenal has been a very good tackler and strong run defender. He’s allowed just 8.7 yards per catch in coverage with an interception and one pass breakup, according to PFF<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“The 25-year-old has never been in a full-time contributor in Kansas City\u2019s defense, playing fewer than 550 snaps in each of his four seasons with the Chiefs,” wrote Patra. “But in his rotational role, he flashed playmaking ability, plugged holes against the run, generated seven sacks and held his own in coverage (when asked). The former third-round pick is primed to find more responsibility in a new defense.”<\/p>\n

The Colts may be positioned relatively well salary cap-wise, but every GM is always looking for value, especially with Daniel Jones and Alec Pierce likely landing some big paydays.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Feb. 18, 2026, 9:10 p.m. ET With linebacker being an offseason need for the Indianapolis Colts, NFL.com recently…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":761796,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2059],"tags":[95878,2005,7,2004,392,2381,6,49915,95900,95882,95903,95896,95888,95895,95899,95883,98101,95881],"class_list":{"0":"post-761795","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-indianapolis-colts","8":"tag-accessfree","9":"tag-colts","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-indianapolis","12":"tag-indianapolis-colts","13":"tag-indianapoliscolts","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-sstssportsnflcolts","16":"tag-sstsncolts","17":"tag-tagamerican-football","18":"tag-tagindianapolis-colts","19":"tag-tagnational-sports","20":"tag-tagnfl","21":"tag-tagnfl-hub","22":"tag-tagoverall-neutral","23":"tag-tagsports-news","24":"tag-tagzaire-franklin","25":"tag-typestory"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116095825013511582","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/761795","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=761795"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/761795\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/761796"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=761795"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=761795"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=761795"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}