Gophers Draft Prospect Won’t Fully Participate at NFL Combine

It’s NFL Combine week. For what it’s worth, this annual gathering in Indianapolis has become much more about offseason news and the ever-churning NFL rumor mill than it has the draft prospects who are there trying to get the attention of scouts, coaches and executives in attendance.

But that doesn’t mean the scouting portion of the combine doesn’t happen. Already on Monday, NFL teams started meeting with draft prospects. One of those prospects in attendance this week is Minnesota Gophers linebacker Cody Lindenberg, who is homegrown out of Anoka, MN.

Minnesota Gophers linebacker Cody Lindenberg sitting out parts of NFL Combine

Cody will be in Indy, meeting with coaches and executives around the league, but he will not be a full participant. According to Darren Wolfson (KSTP), Lindenberg will not take part in any of the physical drills or tests at the NFL Combine late this week. It sounds like he is nursing some sort of injury…

Former #Gophers LB Cody Lindenberg (Anoka HS) will wait until Pro Day March 19th to do on-the-field testing. He’ll still do interviews this week at the Combine. The extra 3ish weeks give him a chance to be 100 percent. pic.twitter.com/rKtNNtOAYT

— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) February 24, 2025

Cody Linenberg played five seasons of college football (2020-2024), all of which were played at home with the Minnesota Gophers. After dealing with injuries that plagued much of his collegiate career, Lindenberg played 38 games, totaling 209 tackles, 8 passes defended, 1 interception and 1 forced fumble.

This season was only the second in which Lindenberg has stayed healthy throughout, and the numbers show that. In his final season as a Golden Gopher, Cody Lindenberg easily led Minnesota in tackles, with 94.

Related: Record Number of Minnesota Gophers Invited to NFL Scouting Combine

The second-most prolific tackler for Minnesota last season was Maverick Baranowski, who totaled 65 tackles. For those who struggle in the math department, that’s 29 less than his middle linebacking partner.

What will Lindenberg bring to NFL?

Lindenberg, a late-round projected pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, posted a 72.2 defensive PFF grade last season. His 79.3 run defense grade was good for 3rd on the team, behind only freshman safeties Kerry Brown and Koi Perich.

Every NFL team is looking for big 'backers who can run and Minnesota's Cody Lindenberg (6030e, 240e) is one of 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐬𝐢𝐳𝐞/𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐬 in this year's LB class.

Checkout #45 run with shallow crosser here👇and then attack downhill with perfect timing for the sack… https://t.co/zHF79GkPhm pic.twitter.com/OJKO77gGlE

— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) October 17, 2024

Lindenberg is one of those linebacker prospects that reminds me a lot of Blake Cashman or Jack Gibbens, who have both found regular roles at the NFL level, after being drafted out of Minnesota.

Related: Minnesota QB Max Brosmer Gets THE Invite

Cody Lindenberg is a smart football player who will work hard to make himself the best possible linebacker he can be at the next level. As long as he stays healthy, there’s no reason to bet against Lindenberg making an NFL roster out of camp, no matter where he ends up being selected.