Round 2, Pick 47: Gabe Jacas, DE, Illinois
Plenty of Defensive Ends dominated in Mobile for the Senior Bowl, but Gabe Jacas stands out one with a realistic chance to be available in the middle of Round 2 and with a balance of first step quickness and strength with a good arsenal of power moves to build off of.
Jacas’ consistent improvement from year to year, strong play in the Senior Bowl, and red hot finish to his college career suggest the best is yet to come for the Fighting Illinois alum. At 270 lbs he is a bigger Defensive End, but he has a lot of quick twitch lean muscle on his frame and was a Feldman Freak this offseason, suggesting he should test well in Indianapolis. The Colts could use a bull rusher to collapse pockets quickly at DE, and Jacas could fit the bill to add to a rotation with Laiatu Latu and JT Tuimoloau.
Round 3, Pick 78: Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech
The peanut punching Red Ranger himself, Rodriguez is a sideline to sideline impact player with smart instincts, excellent coverage ability, and a wicked punch out of the football to cause turnovers. While his size, short length, and lack of power against blockers will hurt his stock for some teams; his dominance at Mobile and in his 2025 season will be very appealing for teams looking for an impact Weakside Linebacker.
The Colts have lacked a playmaking Linebacker since waiving Darius Shaquille Leonard following his ankle/back injury, and have lacked coverage ability in the 2nd level of the defense since Bobby Okereke left in free agency. With Rodriguez the Colts could hope to get both back. As long as the Defensive Tackles in front of him keep him free of blockers, expect Rodriguez to make a lot of plays against ball carriers. Even if he doesn’t receive the level of help up front in the NFL that Lee Hunter and Skyler Gill-Howard afforded him at Texas Tech, Rodriguez’s ability to matchup against backs, slot receivers, and most Tight Ends in coverage is very valuable and increasingly rare.
A wise team would like to snag a player with these rare skills and high impact playmaking tendencies sometime on Day 2. Rodriguez himself said at the Senior Bowl he loved the mentorship and coaching he got from Colts assistant Linebackers coach Cato June at practices and would love the opportunity to continue to be mentored by the former Colt in the pros. After June’s firsthand look at Rodriguez’s dominance at mobile, it’s pretty easy to think the feeling is mutual.
Round 4, Pick 113: Nadame Tucker, DE, Western Michigan
Double dipping may have been a taboo at a Super Bowl watch party, but in the Draft at a premium need position it is anything but. With Kwity Paye, Tyquan Lewis, and Samson Ebukam all unrestricted Free Agents and the Defensive End position struggling to provide consistent pressure over the last few years, a double dip at the position in the Draft (alongside a potential investment in Free Agency) is if anything encouraged.
Another Senior Bowl standout, Tucker is a late bloomer of the Defensive End class after a breakout Senior Year in his sole year at Western Michigan. That is to be expected as the Bronco only started playing football his Junior year of high school before joining JUCO football to start his collegiate career. He did transfer to Houston in 2022, but struggled to see any meaningful playing time there with sparse playing time that didn’t give him the opportunity to register even a single sack there.
Once he transferred to Western Michigan, Tucker went wild in the MAC. With 14.5 sacks and 61 pressures, it’s clear the rest of the MAC’s Tackles were not much of a challenge for him. He had the highest pass rush win rate in 2025 (28.4%) and continued to flash constantly at the Senior Bowl (including 5 tackles, 3 for loss, and 2 sacks in game), suggesting his 2025 wasn’t a one year wonder but tangible development.
Tucker is a shade under 250 lbs and wins with explosive and frenetic energy off the line and a ton of bend and flexibility to win as a speed rusher. There are flashes of speed to power as well with nice leverage and strong hand swipes. He doesn’t have the strongest anchor but makes a living against the run by shooting through gaps and providing excellent pursuit on the backside of run plays.
Expect the former Bronco to go in Round 3-4 in the draft, and should he be there just outside the top 100 the Colts should pounce on gaining his services. With Tucker providing the speed, and Jacas providing the power, the Colts could have a nice young rotation to grow together alongside Latu and Tuimoloau in a potential DE revamp.
Round 5, Pick 154: Kobe Baynes, G, Kansas
Baynes is a mid round favorite of mine in the guard class. Average size Guard with nice athleticism to get out in space and move laterally and a very long wingspan to keep defenders from getting inside his pads. Baynes has allowed just 18 pressures (2.6%) over the last two seasons for the Jayhawks with a good anchor and reliable hand placement and strength.
While he is a late bloomer as well, he also has no injury history and when he’s started he has been very effective in Big12 play. His aggression in the run game is also very strong and he seems to know exactly what is asked of him in a variety of run concepts and executes with little hesitation.
Kobe seems to have better athleticism than testing data has shown in the past, and his impact on the field has been impressive when called upon. Baynes could be a nice addition for the Colts OL as they look to add depth behind Quenton Nelson and Matt Goncalves.
Round 6, Pick 216: Deven Eastern, NT, Minnesota
Another Senior Bowl standout, Eastern had an excellent 2nd day of practice, getting the better of several of the best interior offensive linemen at Mobile in 1 on 1s and in 11 on 11s. The Minnesota native has undergone a transformation from a 260 lb. 3 Technique upon becoming a Gopher to a 316 lb. Nose Tackle this past season. Since gaining weight, he became more comfortable as a 1 Technique from 2024 to 2025 with powerful size and a long wingspan to win the length battle against guards and centers even when he doesn’t win the leverage battle at 6’5.
Eastern flashes a quick first step and a strong anchor to control interior gaps. One of the more athletic DTs in a stacked Senior Bowl group, Eastern had his flashes at Minnesota and Mobile. Over the final 2 years of his collegiate career he had 31 pressures and 4.5 sacks. He still requires work to gain more consistency, especially with pad level, gaining more pass rush moves, and maintaining his heavier weight (or even gaining some) while still having speed (dropped down to 302 for Senior Bowl) if he wants to stay at Nose Tackle.
Round 7, Pick 230: Landon Robinson, DT, Navy
The Senior Bowl wasn’t the only All Star game, and as the week prior the Shrine Bowl was also in full swing. One of the big standouts there was undersized 3 Technique DT Landon Robinson from the Naval Academy. The former 220 lb. Linebacker transformed in one year to become a 280+ lb. Defensive Tackle, and in doing so created a potential NFL future. Over the last 2 seasons he has recorded 62 pressures and 10.5 Sacks as a Midshipman, displaying his top end athletic gifts on Defense and on Special Teams. His 5’11 height is among the shortest seen for a Defensive Tackle, but his is a stocky and blazing fast DT who will guarantee leverage battle wins against most linemen.
Navy loved to use Landon on trick punt plays, which he was able to execute at a very high level with 3 career carries for an astonishing 87 yards rushing. His speed, quickness, and vision were on full display for a man of his size was downright impressive.
Robinson is a bit of a risk considering his experience with Navy is more untested compared to Power 4 Conference Defensive Tackles and his size at this point is still smaller than most Defensive Tackles. But with Navy weight/body fat restrictions no longer being an issue once he joins the NFL he could potentially pack on more weight at least. If his performance at the Shrine Bowl is any indication, Robinson is ready to compete against better competition and should be a fun Day 3 flier for teams.
Round 7, Pick 253: Trevor Brock, OL, Buffalo
Turns out double dipping isn’t something we can do with positions in this draft, but with collegiate career paths as well. Similar to Nadame Tucker in Round 4, Trevor Brock is another former JUCO football player who got a chance in the MAC conference and broke out when given the opportunity.
Brock allowed just 60 pressures over 3 years with the Buffalo Bulls, improving each year as a pass protector and run blocker. His first 2 seasons he was exclusively a Left Guard but in 2025 he shifted to Right Tackle and had a breakout year. The 6’5 314 lb. lineman has adequate speed to handle fast outside rushers with quick feet to get to his sets in a hurry and an impressive recovery anchor if initially beaten to regain control. His tape can be inconsistent in MAC, but Brock has an interesting combination of solid size and speed that he could be a fun developmental lineman in the NFL for a good OL coach to mold.
For the Colts with Braden Smith entering Free Agency, 2025 rookie Jalen Travis likely getting a starting job if given the opportunity, and Blake Freeland coming off of a season ending leg injury from the 2025 preseason, the Colts could use some depth potential at Tackle. Brock’s history on both sides of the line and both inside and outside gives further incentive to take a flier on him as a potential swing lineman.
