Pats Pulpit
While they made no changes to the top of the depth chart, the New England Patriots overhauled their linebacker depth during this year’s offseason. One piece of that process was inserting some much-needed youth, although no major investments were made in that regard.
The most prominent move was selecting TCU’s Namdi Obiazor in the fifth round of the draft.
Name: Namdi Obiazor
Position: Off-ball linebacker
Jersey number: 48
Opening day age: 24 (4/19/2002)
Measurements: 6’2 3/4”, 229 lbs, 10 1/2” hand size, 30 3/4” arm length, 75 3/4” wingspan, 4.53s 40-yard dash, 7.24s 3-cone drill, 4.36s short shuttle, 37” vertical jump, 9’11” broad jump, 21 bench press reps, 9.14 Relative Athletic Score
NFL: New England Patriots (2026-) | College: Iowa Western (2020-21), TCU (2022-25)
Despite being a versatile defensive back, Obiazor was rated a no-star prospect and received zero Division I scholarship offers coming out of Eden Prairie, MN, High School. He therefore decided to try his luck at the JUCO level, joining Iowa Western for a two-year stint. It proved to be a fruitful endeavor: not only did he register 31 tackles, an interception, and a blocked kick in his 16 games, he also finally put himself on the recruiting map.
TCU won a lively competition for his services, and it did not take him long to make an impact. In all, Obiazor went on to spend four years in Fort Worth, playing in 53 games with 40 starts. Along the way, he made the switch from the nickel safety position to off-the-ball linebacker in 2023 — promptly leading the team with 84 tackles and being named an honorable All-Big 12 mention.
Overall, Obiazor finished his career at TCU with 302 tackles, 8.5 sacks, a pair of forced fumbles and four takeaways (3 INTs, 1 FR). He was ultimately selected 212th overall by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Strengths: Obiazor is a tall and decently-sized defender very much in the mold of modern-day linebackers. He is a good form tackler who is not easily displaced and has the strength and lower-body foundation to get ball carriers to the ground. He also is a capable downfield player who has shown an ability to get past blockers as well as some good timing and acceleration on blitzes. As a coverage player, he has proven himself a competitive player with active hands and adequate movement skills. He also has a good feel for the game, both on defense and special teams. In general, he is a versatile player who can transition between positions easily.
Weaknesses: Despite measuring almost 6-foot-3, Obiazor does not have particularly noteworthy length (his 30 3/4-inch arms rank in the 9th percentile among linebackers). He also lacks the sideline-to-sideline speed as well as the quickness to be a consistent impact player in coverage. As a run defender and blitzer, he oftentimes appears to play the blocker rather than the ball, which in turn can lead...
