Pre-Draft 2026 Rookie LB Primer

IT. IS. DRAFT WEEK.With the 2026 NFL Draft days away, it's time to talk about everyone's favorite position with this year’s rookie linebackers—and what a class it is to talk about. We have thumpers, athletic freaks, and undersized studs. In this episode, Jake Kohlhagen and Scott Soltis discuss Scott's evaluation process, compare this class to the 2025 class, and put forth the names to know for your drafts (and others to keep an eye on). 0:00 Cold open: It's draft time, baby1:04 Scott's approach to evaluating linebackers1:46 Why PFF run defense grade is king for LBs4:09 Why run defense grade beats overall grade8:11 The 2026 LB class vs. the 2025 class15:12 Arvell Reese, Ohio State22:29 Sonny Styles, Ohio State32:28 3rd round LBs: the logjam37:49 CJ Allen, Georgia43:10 Anthony Hill Jr., Texas51:13 Jake Golday, Cincinnati56:09 Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech57:52 Josiah Trotter, Missouri1:01:08 Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh1:12:09 Closing thoughtsCheck out our free IDP trade calculator, powered by Adam's dynasty rankings: https://idptradecalculator.com/Subscribe to our YouTube channel for our other shows, The IDP After Show and All IDP.If you'd like to support the show, you can do so for just $5/month over at ⁠theIDPshow.com⁠. We've got some premium features for paid supporters that we know you'll enjoy. Follow us on Twitter ⁠@theidpshow⁠. Thanks for listening!