- Anthony Hill Jr. is the early LB1 favorite: The Texas star could be a top-15 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
- Multiple LSU linebackers on the list: Both Harold Perkins Jr. and Whit Weeks are names to know in the 2026 linebacker class.
- Get a head start on the 2026 class: Try PFF's best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2026's top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.
Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes
The 2025 linebacker class was relatively strong. Four linebackers were taken in the top-50 of the draft in Jalon Walker, Jihaad Campbell, Carson Schwesinger and Demetrius Knight Jr. That’s the most in a class since the 2020 NFL Draft.
Could it be another strong class next April? Here are 10 linebackers to know as we enter summer scouting for the 2026 NFL Draft. Please note that this is simply a list of players to watch, not a ranking of the top linebackers in the draft.
Anthony Hill Jr., Texas
Hill entered college as a five-star recruit and immediately lived up to the hype, starting immediately as a true freshman. He’s constantly around the football, whether that’s as a run defender, pass-rusher or in coverage. Since 2023, his 32 coverage stops are tied for the most among FBS linebackers, while his 10 sacks and five forced fumbles are tied for the most among Power Four ones. Hill has had 127 plays where he’s made first contact on the ballcarrier in that same span, the most of any returning Power Four linebacker.
Hill is a versatile athlete who wears many different hats for the Longhorns’ defense and could find his way into the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Taurean York, Texas A&M
Like Hill, York has been a starter in each of his first two seasons. But unlike Hill, he was just a three-star recruit coming out of high school.
York’s proven those rankings wrong thus far, leading all returning Power Four linebackers with 59 run-defense stops since 2023. His 122 first contacts on the ballcarrier are tied for fourth among that same group. York has a stocky build at 6 feet, 235 pounds and is an excellent tackler.
Suntarine Perkins, Ole Miss
Perkins is a weird evaluation. He lined up mostly as an edge defender for the Rebels last year but has the build of a safety at 6-foot-1, 210 pounds. While the former five-star recruit is a tweener, he is also immensely talented. He tied for fourth among SEC edge defenders last season with nine sacks while tying for third with 10 tackles for loss/no gain.
He’s simply not big enough to play edge defender in the NFL, though, and is even undersized by a linebacker’s standards as well. Perkins did flash some high-end ability off the ball too, earning an 81.8 coverage grade.
Harold Perkins Jr., LSU
While unrelated, Harold Perkins Jr. shares the last name and the same tweener concerns as the player above him on this list. He’s a bit bigger than Suntarine at 6-foot-1 and 220 pounds, but his weight is still in the first percentile for the position.
Like Suntarine, Harold Perkins Jr. also has intriguing flashes as a pass-rusher. As a true freshman in 2022, he led all Power Five linebackers with a 91.0 pass-rushing grade. He was among the top-15 linebackers the following year in coverage grade (81.1). Perkins is coming off a torn ACL that he suffered in September and will look to re-establish himself as one of the top linebackers in the class.
Whit Weeks, LSU
While Perkins was the LSU linebacker most were excited about entering the year, Weeks was the star for the Tigers in 2024.
He was a constant in the opposing backfields as a sophomore. His 21 tackles for loss/no gain were fourth among all linebackers in the nation, while his 25 pressures were a top-15 mark. Weeks’ ability to click-and-close is as good as anyone in America.
Austin Romaine, Kansas State
Romaine was the Power Four’s highest-graded linebacker as just a true sophomore, earning a 91.0 mark. That was mainly due to his dominance in the run game, as his 90.7 run-defense grade was third in the nation while his 43 run-defense stops were fourth among Power Four ones.
Romaine’s a prototypical “Mike” linebacker at 6-foot-2, 242 pounds and is excellent at beating blockers before they can even get a clean shot on him.
Sonny Styles, Ohio State
Styles began his career as a safety for the Buckeyes before transitioning to linebacker this past season. It was a move that paid off for the former No. 4 overall recruit in the 2022 high school class, as he finished his junior year as one of the 20 most valuable linebackers in the nation, according to PFF’s wins above average metric.
Styles still looks like a safety in coverage, tying for fifth among Power Four linebackers with 16 coverage stops last season. He also adjusted well to the more physical style of play that playing linebacker requires, tallying six sacks and 75 plays with first contact on the ball carrier.
Deontae Lawson, Alabama
The Crimson Tide are losing a linebacker in Jihaad Campbell, who will likely become a first-round pick in the upcoming NFL draft, but they still have another stud patrolling the middle of the field in Lawson coming back.
His eight forced incompletions since 2023 are tied for the most among all returning linebackers in the nation, while his 56 run-defense stops in that same span stand third among returning Power Four ones. Lawson takes on blocks very well due to his strong build at 6-foot-2, 239 pounds and does an outstanding job at reading the quarterback’s eyes in zone coverage.
C.J. Allen, Georgia
Allen is a fantastic athlete at 6-foot-1, 235 pounds, placing above the 98th percentile in PFF’s Game Athleticism Score metric. His sideline-to-sideline speed, combined with his sturdy build, makes him an excellent run-defender. The sophomore’s 89.8 run-defense grade last year was seventh among all linebackers in America.
Allen is also an outstanding tackler, placing in the 94th percentile of all linebackers with just a 7.1% missed tackle rate since 2023.
Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh
Louis was one of six linebackers in the FBS with 80-plus grades as a run defender and in coverage last season. The sophomore led the Power Four with 22 tackles for loss/no gain and four interceptions last season.
Louis’ movement ability in coverage is reminiscent of a slot cornerback, and he has elite agility. He does need to get bigger, though, looking more like a safety at 225 pounds.
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