It was no secret the Chargers were searching for a pass rusher in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night — and they found one.
The Chargers selected former Miami edge rusher Akheem Mesidor at No. 22 overall, making him the heir apparent for Khalil Mack in a pass-rushing unit that was hit hard by Odafe Oweh leaving in free agency.
“I finally know where I’m going and I can’t wait to get there and move all my stuff out to the West Coast,” Mesidor said in a conference call with reporters. “I want people to look at me like, man, this guy came to work.
“I am ready to play right now. I have the motor and relentless effort.”
The 6-foot-3, 259-pound Mesidor should provide immediate depth to a edge rushing unit that needs to recoup some of the production Oweh took to Washington. And with Mack’s career being renewed on a year-to-year basis, Mesidor will get the chance to learn from Mack, Tuli Tuipulotu and Bud Dupree before seeing a likely starting role in the seasons ahead.
Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh was excited about Mesidor joining Tuipulotu and Mack on the field: “That’s fire, as the young people would say.”
The Chargers will be hoping Mesidor is a quick learner — at 25 years old, the Canadian-born Mesidor is older than a typical first-round pick.
Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz wasn’t concerned about Mesidor’s age being an issue.
“Age is just a number. He is very experienced,” Hortiz told reporters. “We got a guy who is 35 years old [Mack] who is still kicking ass.”
Still, Mesidor has intimidating credentials. He had 35½ career sacks and posted 12½ sacks with Miami last season in its run to the national championship game. He also had 17½ tackles for loss last season. He finished 2025 with the sixth-best defense grade (92.5) by Pro Football Focus and had the third-best run defense grade (88.3) among FBS edge rushers.
The one concern with Mesidor are the injury issues that lengthened his stay in the college ranks to six years. He underwent shoulder surgery in 2021 and in 2022 had surgery to repair ligaments in both feet. In 2025, however, he played in 15 of 16 games for the Hurricanes.
“We thoroughly evaluate everybody medically,” Hortiz said.
The Chargers had plenty of options for a pass rusher at No. 22 — Malachi Lawrence, T.J. Parker, Keldric Faulk and Dillon Thieneman were still available — but Mesidor was the guy they wanted. Hortiz said Mesidor’s standout play in the postseason with Miami ultimately played a big factor in their decision to draft him.
Heading into Day 2 of the NFL draft on Friday, the Chargers likely will be on the hunt to find a replacement for the departing Zion Johnson at left guard. They pick at No. 55 (second round) and No. 86 (third) on Friday and at No. 123 (fourth) and No. 204 (sixth) on Saturday.
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