{"id":867557,"date":"2026-04-16T06:58:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T06:58:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/867557\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T06:58:37","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T06:58:37","slug":"colts-upgrade-at-linebacker-in-latest-mel-kiper-jr-mock-draft-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/867557\/","title":{"rendered":"Colts upgrade at linebacker in latest Mel Kiper Jr. Mock Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

According to ESPN\u2019s Mel Kiper Jr. (subscription), the Indianapolis Colts will select Texas linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. with the 47th overall pick (2nd round) in his latest 2-round 2026 NFL Mock Draft<\/a>:<\/p>\n

47.\u00a0Indianapolis Colts<\/p>\n

Anthony Hill Jr., LB, Texas<\/p>\n

With no first-round pick this year, the Colts should be watching the linebacker board very carefully. They signed\u00a0Akeem Davis-Gaither, but they don\u2019t really have another viable starter at the position. Hill was getting top-10 buzz last summer, but he\u2019s firmly in the Day 2 mix now after an uneven season. He can cover a lot of ground at the second level and ran a 4.51 at the combine at 238 pounds. But he also has upside as a pass rusher, and there\u2019s a chance he plays on the edge in the pros. He\u2019d be a good fit in Lou Anarumo\u2019s defense.<\/p>\n

The 6\u20192\u201d, 238 pound junior linebacker (with 32 3\/8\u201d arms) for the Longhorns recorded 69 tackles (37 solo), 7 tackles for loss, 4.0 sacks, 2 interceptions, a pass defensed, 3 forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery during 10 starts in 2025\u2014missing the last two games of the season due to a hand injury.<\/p>\n

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Hill Jr. would earn 2nd-Team All-American and First-Team All-SEC honors for a consecutive season, having been a Freshman All-American and Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the year back in 2023 respectively.<\/p>\n

He has a RAS of 9.93 out of a maximum of 10.0. <\/a><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s his NFL.com Draft Profile Overview:<\/a> <\/p>\n

Overview<\/p>\n

Three-down linebacker with the playing demeanor and production of a future Pro Bowler. He posted 31.5 TFLs, 17 sacks and eight forced fumbles in his three seasons at Texas, making an impact in every phase. He\u2019s instinctive, athletic and under control, transitioning seamlessly from read to react to finish. He plays with downhill thump to thwart interior blocks and the speed to pursue runners from sideline to sideline. Hill has plus cover talent in man or zone, proven credentials as a blitzer or edge rusher, and finishes plays as a strong, reliable tackler. Consistency and field command make him one of the safer linebackers in the class. His size, speed and versatility allow him to profile as an instant-impact rookie at Mike or Will \u2018backer.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s ranked as the 32nd best prospect overall in this year\u2019s draft class by NFL Network\u2019s Daniel Jeremiah:<\/a><\/p>\n

Rank 32<\/p>\n

Anthony Hill Jr.<\/p>\n

Texas\u00a0\u00b7\u00a0LB \u00b7 Junior<\/p>\n

Hill is a fluid mover with outstanding size and speed. Against the run, he isn\u2019t physical to take on blockers, but he has excellent quickness and change of direction to work around them or avoid them altogether. His instincts and speed put him in position to make a lot of plays. He has outstanding closing speed from the back side. In pass coverage, his change of direction is elite. He can use his burst to make tackles underneath. He has the agility to match up with the athletic tight ends he\u2019ll face at the next level. He\u2019s a reliable, chest-up tackler. He\u2019s also a superb\u00a0blitzer, relying on speed to pressure quarterbacks. Overall, Hill isn\u2019t an overly violent\/aggressive player, but his athleticism is an asset at the position.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no secret that the Colts could use an upgrade at linebacker, as either Austin Ajiake or Jaylon Carlies is currently the projected starter alongside recently signed veteran linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither.<\/p>\n

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Hill Jr. projects as a fast, three-down linebacker who could add much needed youth, speed, and athleticism to the Colts front seven going forward and an immediate \u2018plug-and-play\u2019 starter at their linebacker position for 2026 and beyond.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"According to ESPN\u2019s Mel Kiper Jr. (subscription), the Indianapolis Colts will select Texas linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":867558,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2059],"tags":[7524,7781,23243,2005,229,7,117680,2004,392,2381,5000,6,1787,51,1078],"class_list":{"0":"post-867557","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-indianapolis-colts","8":"tag-akeem-davis-gaither","9":"tag-anthony-hill-jr","10":"tag-austin-ajiake","11":"tag-colts","12":"tag-dallas","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-hill-jr","15":"tag-indianapolis","16":"tag-indianapolis-colts","17":"tag-indianapoliscolts","18":"tag-jaylon-carlies","19":"tag-nfl","20":"tag-oklahoma-sooners","21":"tag-texas","22":"tag-texas-longhorns"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116413092361508087","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/867557","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=867557"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/867557\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/867558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=867557"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=867557"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=867557"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}