{"id":770706,"date":"2026-02-23T08:23:43","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T08:23:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/770706\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T08:23:43","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T08:23:43","slug":"indianapolis-colts-address-pressing-need-right-away-in-2026-mock-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/770706\/","title":{"rendered":"Indianapolis Colts address pressing need right away in 2026 mock draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

In The Athletic’s<\/a> first beat writers mock draft of the 2026 NFL draft cycle, the Indianapolis Colts<\/a> addressed a big need on defense.<\/p>\n

Each of the beat writers made the first-round selection for each of the respective teams they cover. The Colts<\/a>, as we know, do not have a first-round pick. Their first selection will come in Round 2 at No. 47 overall, and with that pick, James Boyd selected Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez.<\/p>\n

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“The former Texas Tech standout was a turnover-forcing machine in college, and his comfort level in space would surely be welcomed in Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo\u2019s system,” wrote Boyd.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez was one of PFF’s<\/a> highest-graded run defenders at the linebacker position. He was also very good in coverage, generating four interceptions and three pass breakups. Rodriguez also forced seven fumbles.<\/p>\n

Adding to the linebacker room should be a top priority this offseason for GM Chris Ballard.<\/p>\n

For one, depth is needed. Germaine Pratt is a free agent, and behind Zaire Franklin on the depth chart, there is very little NFL experience.<\/p>\n

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However, in addition to that, an added coverage presence is a must as well, in order to maximize Lou Anarumo’s defensive scheme.<\/p>\n

Ballard also 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

As Boyd noted, the opportunity for Rodriguez to step in and help right away exists.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Indianapolis Colts upgrade linebacker position 2026 NFL mock draft<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In The Athletic’s first beat writers mock draft of the 2026 NFL draft cycle, the Indianapolis Colts addressed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":770707,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2059],"tags":[4955,109473,5422,2005,1972,7,2977,2004,392,2381,35794,11622,5641,6,2299,4995],"class_list":{"0":"post-770706","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-indianapolis-colts","8":"tag-2026-nfl-draft","9":"tag-beat-writers","10":"tag-chris-ballard","11":"tag-colts","12":"tag-first-round-selection","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-germaine-pratt","15":"tag-indianapolis","16":"tag-indianapolis-colts","17":"tag-indianapoliscolts","18":"tag-jacob-rodriguez","19":"tag-james-boyd","20":"tag-linebacker-position","21":"tag-nfl","22":"tag-texas-tech","23":"tag-zaire-franklin"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116118985378886166","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770706","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=770706"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770706\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/770707"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=770706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=770706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=770706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}