Star Missouri football linebacker to enter NFL Draft process

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One of Missouri football’s best defensive players from the 2025 season is entering the NFL Draft process early.

Redshirt sophomore Josiah Trotter, who spent one season with the Tigers and starred at the second level of Mizzou’s 2025 defense, has declared for the NFL Draft as a third-year entrant, he announced via his social media on Thursday, Jan. 1.

If he wanted them, Trotter had two years of remaining eligibility. He started his career at West Virginia and redshirted his first year in the sport. Trotter was a freshman All-American for the Mountaineers in 2024 before transferring to Mizzou.

Instead, he’ll go through the draft process, and all indications suggest he will be a top-100 prospect this year.

Earlier Thursday, Mizzou learned that fellow third-year and potential NFL Draft entrant Cayden Green will not declare for the draft and instead will return to Columbia in 2026.

The Tigers are now waiting on a decision from one final third-year player: defensive end Damon Wilson II, who can stay or declare for the draft.

Trotter was Mizzou’s leading tackler in his lone season in Columbia, racking up 84 total tackles, which included 13 hits behind the line of scrimmage and two sacks.

Pro Football Focus graded Trotter as the third-best run-stopping linebacker in the Southeastern Conference and as a top-five pass-rushing LB in the league.

He has significant professional pedigree in his family.

His father, Jeremiah Trotter Sr., was a four-time Pro Bowler and Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Famer who spent more than a decade in the league.

Josiah Trotter’s older brother, Jeremiah Trotter Jr., was on the Eagles roster than won the Super Bowl last season.

Mock Draft Database has Trotter listed at No. 107 on its consensus big board for the 2026 draft, which is a fourth-round slot. It would not be a surprise to see the 6-foot-2, 237-pound linebacker climb higher as he goes through the NFL Scouting Combine and Pro Day.

It’s a significant loss for Mizzou’s defense.

The Tigers announced earlier Thursday that standout sophomore Nicholas Rodriguez will return in 2026. But, Mizzou is also set to lose two more players from its core, four-player rotation in Khalil Jacobs and Triston Newson to eligibility.

That means Missouri likely will be active in the transfer portal looking to fill those gaps.

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Jeremiah Beasley and Dante McClellan stand as the likeliest players further down the Missouri depth chart to carve out bigger roles in 2026.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Star Missouri football linebacker Josiah Trotter declares for NFL Draft

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