Mansfield's 2026 Defensive Game Changers

We now move to the skill positions on the defensive side of the ball with the linebacker and defensive back groups. The variety of skillset found within their respective groups, while still all performing at a high level, is what I find most intriguing about all of these players, and will hopefully see more for the next couple of years.    Having great close down speed on both the ball carriers and timing up pass deflections is mostly in part to Hardman's ability to see and follow the eyes of the quarterback well. Even when asked to man up against the wide receiver, he does well to stay with them and could play both corner and safety.      Hill's ability to press the receiver and not allowing them to create space at any point alone make him a defensive back to watch come next season. He shows his IQ for the game and position as he times his pass contents well and does great at breaking them up. Even when the ball isn't thrown his way, he does well to get to the ball carrier and make open field tackles.      While maybe not having the obvious physical features of a linebacker, Chavez definitely makes up for it in his play. His run stopping ability is probably the best of his position group, being able to read where holes are going to be created, and filling them. Even when a pulling linemen is coming to create a hole, he is great at standing him up and keeping the hole filled, and even getting off that blocker and making the tackle himself.      As probably the best pure coverage linebacker of this group, Bates' ability to read the quarterbacks eyes well has lead to a multitude of interceptions. Even when asked to rush, he does well to execute stunts and spin moves to get to the backfield, where he possesses good speed to get to the ball carrier. He chases the ball through the whole play and is great on one-on-one tackles both in and outside the tackles.      Being fast and efficient off of the edge on both pass rushing and run stopping, while also displaying great ball vision and play recognition in coverage, make Henry definitely one to watch come this year. His more impressive attributes are shown through his tackling, making great angles on open field tackles and being able to get off of blockers to make tackles off the edge.

We now move to the skill positions on the defensive side of the ball with the linebacker and defensive back groups. The variety of skillset found within their respective groups, while still all performing at a high level, is what I find most intriguing about all of these players, and will hopefully see more for the next couple of years.