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2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Akheem Mesidor

Miami's Rueben Bain is clearly the standout player that they'll be sending into the draft in about another month, but he isn't the only notable defender upfront you can say that about. The man who predominantly played on his opposite flank, Akheem Mesidor, is a fascinating prospect case, but very dominant in 2025 with 12.5 sacks to his name. Mere weeks away from turning 25 years old, the sixth-year senior born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada has had a long road to get to this point, after spending three years at West Virginia, before transferring to The U, where he would only play three games in his first year there, thanks to a foot injury.


Taking advantage of a fifth and sixth year of eligibility, Mesidor ultimately played his best ball in year six, earning his Second-Team All-American and First-Team All-ACC honors last year to go along with some secondary Big 12 honors in his second and third year at WVU. At first glance, it would be tough not to have some concerns due to his age, sixth-year breakout, and ultimately to a lesser extent that foot injury, but Mesidor's stock has been pretty good over the last few months, and it certainly feels like he may be a first-round selection come next Month no matter what. Here's what I have on him.


Player Bio

Name: Akheem Mesidor

Jersey: No. 3 (No. 90 prior to 2023)

Position: EDGE

School: The U (by way of West Virginia)

Class: Sixth-Year Senior

Height: 6'3" 

Weight: 259 lbs 

Games Watched: vs. Louisville (2024), vs. Notre Dame and North Carolina State (2025)


Major Injury History: Mesidor suffered a foot injury early in the 2023 season that held him out of all but three games; undergoing surgery in 2024.



Player Breakdown

Pass Rush Ability (13.75/15)

I wouldn't be unfair to question whether Mesidor would take until year six to match the kind of pass-rush production he showed in 2025, but the tape showed he has a great all-around bag of tricks to get after the quarterback. Explosiveness and first step of the line with relentless energy? You bet. Speed to power conversion? Yes sir. Plus, some good hand-fighting ability and initial pop with his hands don't hurt much. Kind of like with Bain, though, I would've liked to see more counters to stuff if Plan A is a wash, and Mesidor had a tendency to get tangled up and lose his balance after full or partial wins, which cost him some chances at sacks or flushes. Still, very impressed by the bulk of what I saw.


Explosiveness (8.5/10)

One of the bigger knocks on Mesidor is that you'd hope he'd be a bit better in the speed-to-power game, given how quick and violent he can be off the snap. The speed is absolutely there, which explains the score you see below with his first step, but he has more ways to win, and especially on stunts and working to his inside, he can be a handful for a whole heap of guys.


First Step (8.75/10)

While a bit inconsistent in timing, when Mesidor is able to time up snaps properly, his first step and ability to close distance off the edge were eye-popping at times. Watch a snap where it all comes together below against Texas A&M in the playoffs, where you can see him get through for a sack, while also seeing him directly compared to Rueben Bain on the opposite end of the line. He's got to improve his snap timing, but his first step is incredible.

Bend (8/10)

You didn't see it consistently enough, but you got some glimpses of Mesidor being pretty flexible en route to the QB lining up on the EDGE and in wider interior alignments.

 
Hand Usage (8.75/10)

Mesidor is another outlier when it comes to arm length/wingspan, but his hand-fighting ability at the line jumped out pretty quickly for me. He showed off some good pop on his initial punches, which your mileage may vary, given some other factors (snap timing putting him behind the 8 ball, and natural length mainly), but his hand swiping ability was really good at times as well. Additionally, he had a few really good stack-and-shed reps, both inside and outside against the run, that stood out to me.


Motor (9.5/10)

Mesidor's motor is fantastic, and I don't think there was a better example of that than this play vs. Miami, having to loop around some traffic behind the line to make this chase down tackle on Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love. He had a few other plays just like this, and while he's not Bain, teams should feel great about the level of effort and energy Mesidor brings to the table, and you're not going to find a ton of guy as violent and determined in pursuit at the EDGE spot.


Tackling (7/10)

I saw some of this on tape, but Mesidor's missed-tackle numbers were something I knew coming into this. PFF had him down for 11 missed tackles in 2025, for a 15.9% rate, which is...not great.

 
Strength at the LOS (8/10)

Holding up on the inside was a bit of a struggle for Mesidor, who was seen getting stonewalled, directed away from runs/run fits, and not holding up well against extra blockers coming at him from at three and nine o'clock. Although he was a better all-around run defender out wide, his power/strength showed up much more in the pass rush department. I counted four pass-rush reps where he was at the bare minimum getting push against doubles, and a guy with his hand-fighting technique and explosiveness definitely showed some good displays of strength against tackles.


Run Defense (8/10)

Mesidor's ability against the run, playing inside the tackles, was pretty rough at times, getting stonewalled, and he tended to get overpowered in certain spots, but he was certainly better out on the outside, setting an edge and occasionally shooting gaps to make plays in the backfield. I'd worry a little bit about how he'll physically hold up against some of these stronger tackles at the next level, but NFL strength/conditioning programs exist for a reason. Keep him out wide on run downs, and he should be fine.


Versatility (4.75/5)

Like with Bain, Miami was very liberal in how they used Mesidor, and you saw him line up everywhere from 0-tech (which, upon reading into it, he did a good bit of at WVU) outward, which was a bit shocking. You also saw him drop into coverage or play as a spy (mainly in the Notre Dame game), which was a bit interesting as well. Can't say it led to anything noteworthy, but I wouldn't call him a bad pure athlete in space, for whatever it's worth.


Player Summary

Conventional wisdom would suggest that there's going to be a decent chunk of EDGE guys coming off the board in the back half of this first round, and despite the grade you see below, Akheem Mesidor will and should be one of them. His age and foot injury will probably force him into the final quarter of the first round, but I'm looking at teams from the Chargers at 22 and onwards that should certainly be considering the chance to acquire his services. If he somehow falls past the Patriots and Seahawks (two teams I would love him on), clock him in as one of those first few picks of round two; I can't imagine teams not being interested in moving up for him in that scenario. Either way, bet on Mesidor's motor, bet on Mesidor's explosiveness, and I think you have yourself a pretty solid football player.


Rookie Projections: Starting EDGE with Every Down Potential

Third-Year Projections: Above Average Three Down EDGE

Final Grade (85/100): Early Second Round Talent



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