Hunter Wohler may have been picked 232nd in the 2025 NFL draft but that number does not indicate how important the former Wisconsin Badgers starโs role will be for his pro team.
The Indianapolis Colts selected the 22-year-old linebacker in the seventh round in the April event. He was predicted to be picked in the fifth round.
The team must be feeling lucky because no opponent picked Wohler earlier because they believe he is a perfect piece for what they are planning to do this season.
Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo thought the NFL now is a match-up league and Wohler will be crucial for them. He said the former Badgers star could play multiple roles, allowing them to provide the best match-ups in each game.
โItโs a matchup league,โ Anarumo said as quoted by Badger Notes.
โIf the offense puts out a certain personnel group, you want to be able to match it with what theyโre doing, especially on third down. You want to try to get cover guys covering receivers and, nowadays, these tight ends. โฆ The days, to me, of putting linebackers on tight ends is not ideal for the defense.โ
Colts coach raves about Hunter Wohler
Colts general manager Chris Ballard trusts Anarumo. He thinks his deputy is doing the right thing and that is why they picked Wohler.
โLou is pretty creative with what heโs going to do,โ he said.
โWe listed [Wohler] as a linebacker. Heโll play a little bit of both.โ
It feels like things are falling in the right places for Wohler. He played four seasons with the Badgers and there, he experienced changing positions to better suit the teamโs needs.
Wohler credits his former team for this part of his game.
โMy freshman year in college, early on in camp and the first couple of weeks of the season, I was lost, to be honest,โ he said.
โIt was a wake-up call, but having the coaches that I had, it forced me to grow my understanding of the game and my knowledge of defense.โ
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