Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 25, 2026

Jacob Rodriguez

Jacob Rodriguez is an American professional football linebacker for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) He played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers and Texas Tech Red Raiders and was selected by the Dolphins in the second round of the 2026 NFL draft.

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Jun 25, 2026
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Jacob Rodriguez
No. 10 – Miami Dolphins
PositionLinebacker
Roster statusActive
Personal information
Born (2002-09-06) September 6, 2002
Hastings, Minnesota, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight231 lb (105 kg)
Career information
High schoolS. H. Rider (Wichita Falls, Texas)
CollegeVirginia (2021)
Texas Tech (2022–2025)
NFL draft2026: 2nd round, 43rd overall pick
Career history
Awards and highlights

NCAA records

  • Forced fumbles in a season: 7a (2025)
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Jacob Rodriguez (born September 6, 2002)1 is an American professional football linebacker for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) He played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers and Texas Tech Red Raiders and was selected by the Dolphins in the second round of the 2026 NFL draft.

Early life

Rodriguez was born in Hastings, Minnesota, to Joe and Ann Rodriguez.2 He moved to Wichita Falls, Texas, with his family at age 10.2

Rodriguez attended S. H. Rider High School in Wichita Falls. He was rated as a three-star recruit and committed to play college football for the Virginia Cavaliers.3

College career

Virginia

As a freshman in 2021, Rodriguez played all 12 games as a quarterback and a "football player," notching 10 carries for 56 yards and hauling in eight receptions for 65 yards. After the season, he entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal.4

Texas Tech

Rodriguez transferred to play for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, where he switched to linebacker.56 In his first season with Texas Tech in 2022, he appeared in 12 games where he notched 29 tackles with two being for a loss, and a forced fumble.7 In week 10 of the 2023 season, Rodriguez notched six tackles in a win over TCU.8 He finished the 2023 season playing in just five games due to injury, where he totaled 32 tackles with one being for a loss, two pass deflections, an interception, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery.9 In week 6 of the 2024 season, Rodriguez was named the Bednarik Defensive player of the week after notching 13 tackles with one being for a loss, a pass deflection, and a forced fumble in a win over Arizona.10 In week 10, he tallied 13 tackles with two and a half being for a loss, and two sacks in an upset win over Iowa State, earning Big 12 defensive player of the week honors.11 He finished the season with 127 tackles, five sacks, three forced fumbles and an interception.12 He led the conference in total tackles and solo tackles and was named to the All-Big 12 first team.1314 In week 4 of the 2025 season, Rodriguez was named Bronko Nagurski Defensive Player of the Week after recording 11 tackles, one interception, and a forced fumble.15 He would be named to the honor again later in the season when he notched 14 tackles, one interception, and a fumble recovery against No. 7 BYU.16 In the 2025 Big 12 Championship Game, he had 13 tackles in a 34-7 rematch win against No. 11 BYU helping Texas Tech win their first Big 12 Conference Championship.17 He finished the year with 128 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, four interceptions, and seven forced fumbles.18 He was named a unanimous All-American along with teammate David Bailey.19 He won the Chuck Bednarik Award, the Butkus Award, the Lombardi Award, and the Bronko Nagurski Award becoming the first Texas Tech player to win each award.20212223 He finished fifth in voting for the Heisman Trophy.24

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span Wingspan 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 1+3⁄8 in
(1.86 m)		 231 lb
(105 kg)		 30+7⁄8 in
(0.78 m)		 9+1⁄4 in
(0.23 m)		 6 ft 2+5⁄8 in
(1.90 m)		 4.57 s 1.60 s 2.67 s 4.19 s 6.90 s 38.5 in
(0.98 m)		 10 ft 1 in
(3.07 m)		 23 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day2526

Rodriguez was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the second round with the 43rd overall pick of the 2026 NFL draft.27

Career statistics

College

Legend
Led NCAA Division I FBS
Bold Career high
Season Team GP Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Cmb Solo Ast TFL Sck Int Yds Avg TD PD FF FR Yds TD
2021 Virginia 12 1 1 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0 0 0
2022 Texas Tech 12 29 17 12 3.0 0.0 0 0 — 0 0 1 0 0 0
2023 Texas Tech 5 32 21 11 1.0 0.0 1 0 0.0 0 2 2 1 0 0
2024 Texas Tech 13 127 77 50 10.5 5.0 1 9 9.0 0 4 3 2 0 1
2025 Texas Tech 14 128 63 65 11.0 1.0 4 41 10.3 0 6 7 2 69 1
Career 56 317 179 138 25.5 6.0 6 50 8.3 0 12 13 5 69 2

Personal life

Rodriguez is a Christian.28 He married his wife Emma on July 1, 2023.2 She is as an aviation officer in the United States Army and flies the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter.29

Notes

Notes

References

References

  1. "Jacob Rodriguez LB Texas Tech". nfldraftbuzz.com. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  2. Williams, Don (September 12, 2024). "Success started early for Texas Tech football's Jacob Rodriguez as a youth wrestling star". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  3. Hall, Jonathan (April 27, 2020). "Rider quarterback Jacob Rodriguez commits to University of Virginia". Times Record News. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  4. Newton, Matt (December 3, 2021). "Virginia QB Jacob Rodriguez Enters Transfer Portal". Virginia Cavaliers on SI. SI.com. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  5. Ramierz, Jarrett (August 3, 2023). "Tech's Rodriguez assuming larger role at inside linebacker spot". RedRaiderSports.com. Rivals.com. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  6. Williams, Don (April 6, 2022). "Texas Tech football: Jacob Rodriguez impresses in spring practice". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  7. "Jacob Rodriguez 2022 Game Logs". Sports Reference. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  8. Williams, Don (November 6, 2023). "Texas Tech football staff plans to hold Jacob Rodriguez to 4-game redshirt limit". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  9. Ramirez, Jarrett (August 8, 2024). "How an unorthodox training regimen is impacting LB Jacob Rodriguez". RedRaiderSports.com. Rivals.com. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  10. Hamm, Timothy (October 8, 2024). "Red Raiders LB Jacob Rodriguez Named National Defensive Player of the Week". RedRaiderReview.com. Athlon Sports. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  11. Hamm, Timothy (November 5, 2024). "Red Raiders' Jacob Rodriguez Named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week". Athlon Sports. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  12. "Jacob Rodriguez 2024 Game Log". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 12, 2026.
  13. "College Football Defense Big 12 Stat Leaders, 2024 Season". ESPN. Retrieved May 12, 2026.
  14. Clinton, Bryan (December 5, 2024). "Big 12 Announces 2024 All-Conference Football Teams". Heartland College Sports. Retrieved May 12, 2026.
  15. Lee, Ethan (September 24, 2025). "Jacob Rodriguez receives national recognition after Texas Tech's 34-10 win vs Utah". Wreck'Em Red. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  16. "Texas Tech's Rodriguez earns second Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week". Touchdown Club. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  17. Olson, Max (December 7, 2025). "Texas Tech beats BYU for Big 12 title, likely CFP 1st-round bye". ESPN. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  18. "Jacob Rodriguez 2025 Game Log". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  19. Bender, Bill (December 19, 2025). "2025 Consensus All-America team: Caleb Downs, Jacob Rodriguez lead Unanimous selections". The Sporting News. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  20. Epp, Jordan (December 13, 2025). "Jacob Rodriguez Continues To Make History by Winning Chuck Bednarik Award". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  21. "Rodriguez named 2025 winner of the Butkus Award". Texas Tech. December 5, 2025. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  22. "Rodriguez adds to trophy case with Lombardi Award". Texas Tech. December 10, 2025. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  23. "Texas Tech LB Jacob Rodriguez wins Bronko Nagurski Award". ESPN. December 8, 2025. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  24. Williams, Don (December 13, 2025). "Jacob Rodriguez Heisman vote totals, Texas Tech football media ballots". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
  25. Reuter, Chad; Zierlein, Lance. "Jacob Rodriguez Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 14, 2026.
  26. "Jacob Rodriguez College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 14, 2026.
  27. Williams, Charean (April 4, 2026). "Dolphins select Texas Tech LB Jacob Rodriguez in the second round". nbcsports.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved April 24, 2026.
  28. Foust, Michael (November 14, 2025). "Faith on display: Trio of college football stars glorify God on national television". The Heartlander. Retrieved April 21, 2026.
  29. Graham, Matthew (December 6, 2025). "Jacob Rodriguez and wife Emma share emotional moment after Texas Tech's BYU win". The Athlete Lifestyle On SI. Retrieved February 16, 2026.
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