By the looks of it, the Atlanta Falcons should start preparing for life without Kaden Elliss in 2026. Given how much money he's going to make and limited cap space the Falcons have, there's no wonder Ian Cunningham was so hesitant about committing to Elliss' future in Atlanta at the combine.
Assuming he does end up leaving, Jeff Ulbrich's defense will have some major shoes to fill at linebacker. Elliss' departure would mean that Divine Deablo would have to step up big time, but Atlanta should still be looking for someone to don the green dot, even if it's not a veteran free agent.
While guys like Tremaine Edmunds and Nakobe Dean make sense for the Dirty Birds, they need someone with the IQ and playmaking ability to seamlessly replace the 30-year-old. And the only man who can do that will be available for the taking in the 2026 NFL Draft in Texas Tech's Jacob Rodriguez.
Rodriguez has been heralded as a third or fourth-round draft pick, which also means that the Falcons won't have to commit premium draft capital to taking him. And that also means that their lack of a first-rounder will hold no bearing in their pursuit of him, it all depends on if he's available for them.
The Falcons should consider drafting Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez to replace Kaden Elliss
The 23-year-old had a fantastic season as one of the linchpins of Texas Tech's defense in 2025. He won the Bronco Nagurski Award, the Butkus Award, the Chuck Bednarik Award, and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, and finished fifth in Heisman Trophy voting. And he did all of this as a linebacker.
Not only did Rodriguez amass 117 tackles and 10 tackles for loss, he logged six pass breakups, four interceptions, and a staggering seven forced fumbles, not to mention two fumble recoveries. Those are mind-boggling numbers, especially for a guy who helped lead TTU to the College Football Playoff.
The only reason that he's projected so low on draft boards at 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds, which is smaller than the NFL's average MIKE linebacker. He also has sub-31-inch arms and a smaller wingspan, which are alarming for a player who plays at a luxury position like off-ball linebacker.
However, amid all of his concerns, Elliss is only one inch taller and five pounds heavier, so the similarities between them are uncanny. Both of them are plenty versatile and have a nose for getting to the football (and the quarterback), so the fit in Atlanta would be a lot better than people realize, especially after he shined at the combine.
Like Billy Beane once said in Moneyball, you don't have to replace a player when you can re-create them, and drafting Rodriguez on late Day 2 or early Day 3 would basically be cloning Elliss' impact on this Falcons' defense, which is crucial given how underrated he is and how sought-after J-Rod is.