The Tennessee Titans were able to select Texas' star linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. last night in the 2nd round, and Titans fans should prepare themselves for what he's bringing to the team in 2026.
New HC Robert Saleh is known as a "linebacker guru", and despite both Cody Barton and Cedric Gray already in the LB room, Anthony Hill Jr.'s astronomically high ceiling gives him a fairly large "leg up" in year one. At one point in the 2025 season, NFL Draft analysts were discussing Hill Jr. as a potential top 15-20 pick in this year's draft.
Anthony Hill Jr.'s draft spot won't affect his potential for Tennessee
Unfortunately for some of the top linebackers like Hill Jr., Texas Tech's Jacob Rodriguez, and Georgia's C.J. Allen, the run on offensive skill players pushed the defensive studs down the draft board.
Anthony Hill Jr. is one of the more intriguing, athletic LB prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft pic.twitter.com/o8Qa71nsLy
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) April 19, 2026
Hill Jr. will be providing Tennessee's linebacker room with positional versatility, elite athleticism, and above-average processing skills.
One of the biggest reasons why the Titans gravitated towards him is due to the simple fact that he has the ability to play SAM, MIKE, and/or WILL at the next level. It's going to be incredibly interesting to see where he'll begin his career positionally, though it seems like it'll be at either SAM or MIKE since Cedric Gray has been very good at WILL for Tennessee.
The way Hill Jr. can move around on the field at almost 240 lbs. is incredibly beautiful to watch, and his lateral mobility allows him to be effective when covering running backs in the passing game. He's even covered slot receivers from time to time for Texas over the last two seasons.
Hill Jr.'s above-average mental acuity and processing speed allows him to consistently be in the right place more often than not in both phases of the game. He stays true to his keys and doesn't bite on play-action often, which has come up big for the Longhorns over the years when opponents have tried to get "cute" in crucial situations.
The Titans undoubtedly landed a special player with the 60th overall pick, and Longhorns fans are extremely sad to see him go.
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