Will Akheem Mesidor Be the Rookie Pass-Rusher the Chargers Need?
In the 2025 season, the Los Angeles Chargers' sack total of 45, and pressure rate of 23.6%, were both above league average. Pass rush was not the problem with the 2025 Chargers.
However, the team lost edge disruptor Odafe Oweh to the Washington Commanders in free agency, and that was a big hit. The Chargers traded with the Baltimore Ravens last October 7 for Oweh's services, and Oweh's midseason addition transformed Jesse Minter's defense. In 247 pass-rushing snaps with the Chargers (including the postseason), Oweh totaled 11 sacks and 39 total pressures. In L.A.'s 16-3 wild-card loss to the New England Patriots, Oweh had three sacks and four pressures and he put Patriots offensive tackles Will Campbell and Morgan Moses in a blender throughout the game.
But now that Oweh is off to the nation's capital on a four-year, $96 million contract with $68 million guaranteed, new defensive coordinator Chris O'Leary and his staff need to replace that pass-rush juice. The Chargers do have veterans Tuli Tuipulotu, Khalil Mack, and Bud Dupree, and they also selected Miami's Akheem Mesidor with the 22nd pick in the 2026 NFL Draft to fortify that rotation.
Last season for the College Football Playoff runner-up Miami Hurricanes, the 6-foot-3, 259-pound Mesidor had 12.5 sacks and 67 total pressures on a defensive line that generally took opposing quarterbacks in the woodshed. Mesidor turned his game up to a new level as the playoffs began; he totaled 5.5 sacks and 24 pressures from the first-round game against Texas A&M through the national championship game against Indiana. Miami lost that game 27-21, but Mesidor still made life difficult for quarterback Fernando Mendoza - it seemed that wherever Mendoza looked, there was Mesidor ready to tee off on him.
Akheem Mesidor in the 2025 College Football Playoffs.
— Doug Farrar (@NFL_DougFarrar) July 14, 2026
Quarterbacks, beware. @chargerspic.twitter.com/yZLZrYQ2fA
"He has a relentless motor, a highly productive pass rusher, physical player versus the run," Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz said after the Mesidor pick. "Just a guy whose motor never turns off when you put the film on. He was on a heater all year, and played some of his best ball down the stretch in the playoffs. Just really fired up to get him."
Head coach Jim Harbaugh agreed.
"Akheem is a worker, and he's going to come right in and fit into our culture, our team. Good person, good player. A guy that's not afraid to put in the work. He has proven that through his college journey, and is going to fit well."
Mesidor's college journey is interesting. He spent his first two NCAA seasons at West Virginia in 2020 and 2021 before transferring to Miami in time for the 2022 season. When healthy, Mesidor has generally been a standout disruptor, but "when healthy" is kind of an issue. A shoulder issue that required surgery before he started with the Hurricanes in 2022, and multiple foot injuries over the last few years were in the minds of NFL evaluators, as is the fact that Mesidor turned 25 on April 5. More older players are entering the draft in the NIL age, but some in the league might still consider it a negative.
The Chargers didn't. Instead, they marked the gap versatility Mesidor has shown throughout his career as a serious plus. In the 2024 season, for example, he played more than 200 of his snaps inside the offensive tackles, as opposed to on the edge, and he totaled two sacks and 14 pressures as an interior defensive lineman.
Akheem Mesidor creating havoc on the inside.
— Doug Farrar (@NFL_DougFarrar) July 15, 2026
Yeah, he can do that, too. @chargerspic.twitter.com/Q4nll65OKF
"All-down player," Harbaugh said of the new guy. "We can call him a three-down or four-down player. That's what he is. Inside pass rush, outside pass rush. You talk about a 'designated pass rusher,' but he can also fit the run on the inside gaps, and can build the run wall on the edge."
"Versatility," Hortiz said of Mesidor's primary attribute in the D-line rotation. "When you get versatile players along the line of scrimmage, I'm not a coach… but you can get creative with that. You can line him up in a lot of different spots, and let him get after it."
Getting after it on defense will be at a premium for the 2026 Chargers, especially as their offense comes back together with a healthy offensive line. Akheem Mesidor may be the new piece that unlocks an even more effective pass rush in the new season.
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This story was originally published July 16, 2026 at 5:45 AM.