Patriots 2026 Draft Preview: Linebacker
Positional overview: Somewhat lost in the carnage of Super Bowl LX was the fact that Robert Spillane was never listed as more than Questionable to play with an ankle injury. But ended up gutting out all 72 defensive snaps, recording four tackles and four pressures on Sam Darnold. Which I bring up to point out that when he missed the last four games of the regular season, there was a notable dropoff in the performance of the unit as a whole, and the run game in particular.
It's obvious on its face that the franchise is trying to get dealt a new hand at off-the-ball linebacker, given that they discarded Jack Gibbens, Jahlani Tavai and Marte Mapu. And so far have drawn KJ Britt. With the apparent goal of what every NFL team tries to do at every level on both sides of the ball sooner or later, which is to get younger, more athletic, and whenever possible, faster. Which is where the draft comes in.
Taking a U-turn back to that poker metaphor for a second, current Patriots spokesman (for now anyway), Elliot Wolf didn't play his cards close to his chest at all Monday when he made it clear the 2026 Class of linebackers is more about a deep middle class than many elite 1st round prospects. "For me, at least, I thought it was going to be a little bit better than maybe it's come out. I do think it's a good position on day three from a depth standpoint. I think there are a lot of players that you can justify using a day three pick on," were his exact words. And since The Wolf hasn't yet shown a propensity for trying to throw everyone off the trail with disinformation, I'm going to assume that we should all be shopping in Aisle Round 4 and the other bargain shelves, where they're currently sitting with picks No. 125, 131, 171 and five later ones. Don't make a liar out of me, Wolfman.
Current roster: Spillane, Britt, Christian Elliss, Chad Muma, Otis Reese, Amari Gainer.
Borderline Round 3/Round 4 Projections Who Could Be Within Their Reach:
Deontae Lawson, Alabama. 6-foot-3, 226 pounds, 4.60 40-time (unofficial)
A year ago, Lawson was trending as a Top 20ish pick, but fell down draft board slowly but surely over the course of the season, then plummeted like FTX stock once it ended. Still, he is a legitimate NFL prospect, extremely quick for the position, with the ability to cover all 53 1/3 from sideline-to-sideline. He wore the green dot for the Tide, starting all 15 games and leading them with 80 tackles, with an almost identical number of snaps against the pass and the run. He excels in zone coverage, but can sometimes get exposed when he's iso'd on a bigger tight end or running back. He's more of a guy who's going to shed blocks with good hand technique and setting up blockers with good angles than overpower anyone. Yet his Pro Football Focus grade against the run went up every season in Bama. He played all three downs and could do so in the pros with some development. For now, he'd be a situational Will for a team like New England that plays a base Nickel.
Kayshaun Elliot, Arizona State. 6-2, 231 lbs, 4.58 (at Pro Day)
The Draftniks are all over the map on Elliott. NFL.com has him listed as just the 15th best LB prospect on the board, but Mock Draft Database (which is compiled from all the major mocks) has him averaged out as being the 125th overall prospect. Still others have him as a Top 100 overall, or close to it. What they tend to like about him is his toughness, work ethic, and physical traits, particularly in the run game, where he's powerful at the point of attack, which a heavy punch to blow up pulling guards and fullbacks in the hole. What they don't like so much is his play speed, despite that respectable 40-time. He gave up a passer rating when targeted of 102.5. But his PFF pass rush grade was 80.4, so he had skills that can be utilized by the right system fit.
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Big Program Guys Who Will Most Likely Be There for the Choosing on Day 3:
Bryce Boettcher, Oregon. 6-1, 230 lbs, 4.61 (Pro Day)
Boettcher didn't start out as a two-sport athlete for the Ducks. But after 43 games as an outfielder/2B, in 2021, and hitting .182 with 3 RBIs, he wisely walked onto the football program as a special teamer. Before becoming a regular on defense and eventually the every-down starter in the middle. Eventually he won the Burlsworth Trophy, which goes to the top former walk-on in the country. Which is an award that exists and I'm just finding out about. Anyhoo, his baseball career picked up as well, and he won a Gold Glove playing centerfield and has been drafted by the Astros. But since where not here to talk about Houston's minor league system, let's instead focus on the fact he was 6th in all of FBS in tackles with 136, 5.5 of those for a loss, plus two sacks, a sack, an INT, and 6 PBUs. His passer rating when targeted as just 74.7, which was Top 100 among all LBs with 300+ snaps. He's not huge but plays with an edge, coming downhill hard to take on bigger blockers and wrap up ballcarriers, with just 14 missed tackles in 777 total snaps. The experience in special teams as well as that status as a legend to walk ons everywhere will be enough to get him a roster spot somewhere as he develops into four-down defender.
Jimmy Rolder, Michigan. 6-2 1/2, 238 lbs, 4.68 (unofficial)
In the span of four seasons, Rolder developed from special teamer to redshirt with two games in the playoffs on the way to the National Championship to backup to Second Team All-Big 10, with 73 tackles, 7 TFLs, 2 sacks, an INT and 2 PBUs. That in his only season as a starter. Still, his fundamentals and technique are NFL-ready. Credited with 115 total tackles in his Wolverines career, he's only given the rap for 6 misses. He just turned 22, so he's one of those high upside/no downside flyers you take on a guy who's projected right now to be a mid-to-late 5th rounder. The Patriots were at Michigan Pro Day, presumably to Rolder with him and not to talk about how the head coach was seemingly buttering his toast on the other side with a young woman associated with the program. Make of that what you will.
Aiden Fisher, Indiana. 6-1, 232 lbs, and I'm going to stop including 40-times if these guys are going make me work for it by not running at the Combine
Fernando Mendoza gets all the credit, the No. 1 pick, and the chance to learn the fragrance of Tom Brady's hair when he's in the building, but on the way to winning the Natty, Fisher was Third Team All American and First Team All Big 10 for the second year in a row. He had 118 tackles in 2024, another 98 last season, with 10.5 of those for loss, and was a Butkus Award (now that, I've heard of) finalist. As you'd imagine with that much production, he's got a reputation as a team leader and a coach in the middle of your defense. What he lacks is elite physical traits. He'd have to rely on his instincts, pre-snap reads, an innate understanding of how a play is developing. But those superpowers haven't let him down before now. And with the mocks averaging out to him still being on the board at No. 165, he'll be a value pick with a curriculum vitae full of winning who can strengthen your locker room.
Late Rounder I Want Strictly for Selfish Reasons:
Scooby Williams, Texas A&M. 6-2, 231 lbs, whatever
No knock on Williams whatsoever. But when the linebacker prospect you're discussing had 12 tackles in his 7 games and his highlight video is currently sitting on 1.8K views, there's not a lot to be said. NFL.com considers him a 7th rounder or an UDFA. But obviously I want him for all those Knee Jerk Reaction entries that will write themselves. Can he play? He can play with the name Scooby on my team any day of the week and twice on Sunday. I'd just want no part of him if he answered to Scrappy.
Giphy Images.The Perfect Patriot: For this year's team's needs, Keyshaun Elliot. But I think he'll be off the board by the time they're ready to pull the trigger at 125 or 131.
Whom They'll Draft: Jimmy Rolder. Rather than take a big swing in the 4th round, I think that's where they trust their ability to land offensive line depth they can develop into starters. And they pull the trigger on a young, very much developing linebacker on a career upswing in Rolder. A Michigan Wolverine defender who comes here, works hard, stays humble, gets better as he goes along, and is your starter in a year or two. And so becomes the anti-Chase Winovich. Count on it.