Fantasy Football IDP: 2026 Rookie Linebacker Prospect Preview

Mar 23, 2026

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

While the league has devalued the off-ball linebacker position over the past decade, they remain the lifeblood of IDP leagues, and we're getting a top-heavy infusion of linebacker talent in this 2026 draft class.

I'll circle back on these linebackers after the draft, when we'll have a clearer understanding of their path to 2026 IDP viability. But for now, I wanted to share my thoughts on who I believe these players are, and what NFL front offices might see as draft day approaches.

More IDP Rookie Previews: Defensive Backs | Defensive Line

Again, I don't want to position myself here as a scout. Like you, I'm a football junkie who's fallen in love with defense and IDP over the past few seasons. For this exercise, I combed through scouting reports, stats, and truncated game tape and highlights to help me articulate my thoughts, with the intent of helping readers make rookie draft and dynasty decisions that give them a leg up on their league mates.

Let's dig in.

Linebackers

Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State

Styles, a former safety who converted to linebacker, is a bit of a unicorn. Styles posted a perfect 10.0 Relative Athletic Score at the Combine, and you can see it on his tape. He wore the green dot for Matt Patricia's Ohio State defense, which speaks volumes, given it was the 20-year-old's first year at the position.

Sonny Styles is OFFICIALLY all of 6’5, 244lbs with 33” arms, and has elite athletic traits and elite film, ESPECIALLY in the biggest game of his season.

#2 player on my 2026 Big Board: pic.twitter.com/A9PK4IyOXo

— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) February 26, 2026

His raw numbers don't jump off the page, but context matters here. Styles spent an above-average rate of his defensive snaps in college on the edge, 15.1 percent, per Sports Info Solutions, which limited some of his key tackle and tackle-for-loss metrics. Depending on his landing spot in the NFL, we can likely expect him to play a more traditional off-ball linebacker role.

The ceiling is a defender who can cover tight ends one-on-one, rush the passer situationally, and provide real range in run defense from sideline to sideline. Considering the expected early first-round capital and that perfect 10.0 RAS, Styles might be the safest bet to be the LB1 in this year's class for IDP purposes. He's the rare off-ball linebacker worth a top-10 pick, and whoever drafts him is getting a three-down anchor with Pro Bowl upside.

CJ Allen, LB, Georgia

CJ Allen isn't going to wow anyone with a single transcendent physical trait, but like Styles, Allen wore the green dot for a national powerhouse at just 20-years old.

CJ Allen (3) with some see ball get ball after aligning/checking the defense before the snap

pic.twitter.com/BPCSTdspJn

— Anthony Cover 1 (@Pro__Ant) March 17, 2026

He profiles as a starter who brings the physicality and leadership that coaches fall in love with, but his pass-game ceiling could be a bit capped, especially early on. What makes Allen a safe selection is the total package beyond the physical traits. The leadership, football intelligence, experience in a pro-style system under Kirby Smart, and three years of high-level SEC production all point to a player who will start from Week 1 and anchor a defense for years. He currently sits on the fringe of being a first-round pick, and while he doesn't necessarily come with a perfect profile, he'll certainly be worthy of consideration early on in IDP rookie drafts. It'll be interesting to see if Allen is selected in the first or slides to the early second, because that draft slot will shape his rookie ADP. Either way, you're getting a three-down linebacker with plus instincts and a decade of starting tape ahead of him. The ceiling might not be superstar, but the floor is rock solid. And, as we saw last season with Carson Schwesinger, early Round 2 draft capital is far from a Year 1 death sentence, depending on the landing spot.

Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech

Jacob Rodriguez was the highest-graded player in all of college football in 2025. Not the highest-graded linebacker. Not the highest-graded defender. The highest-graded player, period, according to Pro Football Focus. His 93.7 overall grade topped everyone, and he swept the board during the award season, winning the Bednarik, Butkus, Nagurski, and Lombardi awards, finishing fifth in Heisman voting, and leading Texas Tech to its first Big 12 championship.

The numbers are absurd. We're talking 128 tackles, seven forced fumbles (led the FBS), four interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and he even threw in a pair of rushing touchdowns for good measure. He's the only FBS player since 2005 to record at least five forced fumbles, four interceptions, and two fumble recoveries in a single season.

A great indicator of a strong prospect: they can affect or derail a drive in a string of plays. #TexasTech LB Jacob Rodriguez did that 3 plays in a row against Arizona State.

- Run stop on 1st down

- Blitz and batted pass at the LOS on 2nd down

- Chase and tackle RB screen on… pic.twitter.com/ggAUdafZB2

— Devin Jackson (@RealD_Jackson) March 10, 2026

Rodriguez is the complete package. He posted top-five percentile marks across the board in 2025: tackle rate, PFF run-defense grade (95.3, best in the nation), PFF coverage grade (93.0, also best in the nation), and first-contact rate.

The background is worth noting, too. Rodriguez started his college career at Virginia as a quarterback before transferring to Texas Tech and walking on as a linebacker. That quarterback background shows up in his coverage instincts and route recognition. For IDP purposes, Rodriguez checks all of the boxes. He's going to be a Day 2 pick at worst, and whichever team drafts him is getting a three-down linebacker who can stay on the field in subpackages because his coverage grade was elite by any standard. The forced fumbles are sticky, the interceptions are real, and the tackle floor is bankable. He's the kind of prospect who could be an LB1 as a rookie if he lands in the right scheme.

Anthony Hill Jr., LB, Texas

At 6'3", 238 pounds with legitimate 4.5 speed, Anthony Hill Jr. is an impressive size-speed prospect who brings athletic versatility to the field. Hill's tackle grades are elite (90th percentile), and he also brings natural pass-rush ability that most off-ball linebackers simply do not possess. His 17 career sacks with legitimate dip-and-bend moves give offensive linemen real problems when he comes on delayed blitzes, and that pass-rush juice adds a weekly spike ceiling to his IDP profile that pure run-and-chase guys don't have.

Anthony Hill Jr. was a GAME WRECKER, posting 2 sacks, 2 QB hits, and 9 total pressures against Mississippi State

Potential 1st round pick at LB 👀 pic.twitter.com/w5vsZJvdkr

— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) October 28, 2025

He's not a finished product in coverage, but he has the size to hold up against the run and the athletic profile to stay on the field in passing situations. He's going to hear his name called in the first two rounds, and that draft capital will ensure he gets every opportunity to be a three-down player early in his career. For IDP purposes, Hill offers a tackle floor and splash-play ceiling. He's not as polished as some of the senior prospects in this class, but his physical tools and age-adjusted production suggest his best football is still ahead of him. In a linebacker class stacked with quality options, Hill has legitimate top-three upside at the position. It's all about the landing spot.

Jake Golday, LB, Cincinnati

Jake Golday runs like a safety but hits like a linebacker. At Cincinnati, he was asked to operate in a ton of space, think Nick Emmanwori alignment, which helped showcase his speed to chase down the ball anywhere on the field. Scouts believe his mental processing took a clear jump in 2025, which was exactly the hope in his second season as a full-time linebacker.

What makes Golday genuinely interesting from an analytical standpoint is that he comes out of college with one of the best career coverage and run-defense grades in this entire class. He graded out at an elite level despite spending about 29% of his snaps on the edge and 27% in the slot, per Sports Info Solutions. His strong career PFF marks become even more impressive when you consider how often he was asked to do things that traditional linebackers simply aren't asked to do. Even with those varying alignments, he still managed a good enough tackle rate despite not often being put in a position where he could make first contact. He was chasing from depth, cleaning up from the slot, flowing from the edge, which is not ideal for IDP production, but he still got it done.

Jake Golday continues to stand out in a really strong LB class. I think there are 3 future Pro Bowl LBs playing college football in Ohio right now.

He’s an elite athlete compared to most sub-LBs, but at 6’3”/240 you aren’t making any tradeoffs in run support. Plays blocks as… pic.twitter.com/109TUv4meX

— James Foster (@NoFlagsFilm) October 7, 2025

The ceiling here is higher than most linebackers in this class can reach, but it requires patience and a real development plan from the team that drafts him. He's not a plug-and-play Week 1 starter in the way some of the first-round guys are. His comfort in the slot from Cincinnati's 3-3-5 gives coordinators flexibility in sub-packages, which should help him stay on the field on passing downs even as a rookie, and his ability to operate in space gives him a pathway to three-down work that most mid-round linebackers simply don't have. For IDP purposes, Golday is a mid-late round target in rookie drafts who could return significant value if he lands in a scheme that unlocks his athleticism. Don't expect immediate LB2 production. Do expect to be happy you stashed him by Year 2.