The Chicago Bears have been linked to several prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft who are on the older side, including former Miami Hurricanes star Akheem Mesidor.
Mesidor turned 25 on April 5.
The Bears had one of the least effective pass rushes last season, despite ample investments in their defensive line. Getting healthy and, they hope, improving in coverage will help. But juicing up the pass rush directly is the best solution, and Mesidor could help.
Bears Get Ex-Scout’s Take on Akheem Mesidor Before 2026 NFL Draft
Former Scout Projects Bears to Draft Akheem Mesidor
Bears general manager Ryan Poles has a scouting background. He and assistant GM Jeff King are looking to repeat the success they had with their 2025 draft class. Mesidor would certainly check a need off the Bears’ list on paper.
Former NFL player and scout Bucky Brooks, now an analyst for the league, projected the Bears will use the 25th overall pick in hopes that he will do so on the field.
Moreover, Brooks noted Mesidor fits the mold of what defensive coordinator Dennis Allen wants.
“There is always room for a high-motor defender with pass-rush skills on a Dennis Allen-coached defense,” Brooks wrote on April 21. “Mesidor is an aggressive edge with violent hands and a relentless spirit that overwhelms opponents at the point of attack.”
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler notably ranked Mesidor as the fifth-best edge rusher in the 2026 class, giving him a first-to-second-round grade.
Brugler noted that “Mesidor won’t be universally loved because of his age and injury history.”
“But he is a disruptive force off the edge who is always playing 100 mph,” Brugler wrote in his “The Beast” draft guide. “He projects as a three-down NFL starter, with interior value on subpackages.”
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein compared the 6-foot-3, 259-pound Mesidor (whose physical measurements actually fall short of what Allen has preferred) to Jonathan Greenard.
Greenard battled injuries last season, but the Minnesota Vikings star was a Pro Bowler in 2024.
“Mesidor is an instinctive, high-effort edge rusher with a fluid rush style and a deep toolbox,” Zierlein wrote in his pre-draft profile on the young edge rusher. “He’s a problem for guards when reduced inside, too. His urgency shows up in run defense, where he uses play strength and short-area quickness to disrupt blocking schemes and stay around the football.
Zierlein added that Mesidor’s “talent and motor are obvious, but his age and injury history could push some teams to discount his grade below what the tape shows,” with King making note of the significance of prospects’ film and how the Bears want competitors.
Bears Would Challenge Draft History
The Bears are in a spot that has produced several starting-caliber players over the past half-decade-plus. However, they would undoubtedly be challenging conventional wisdom by picking Mesidor, at least in Round 1.
There have been 86 former first-round picks who were 25 or older during their rookie season in the history of the draft, per Stathead. It drops to 14 prospects since the realignment in 2002.
The number falls even further to just three in the last 10 draft cycles.
Only one of those players is under contract with an NFL team as of April 21. That is Denver Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles. Bolles is the only one of that trio to earn All-Pro and/or Pro Bowl honors. He added both to his resume this past season.
There have been four edge defenders age 25 or older selected in Round 1. Two of them were before the AFL-NFL merger was announced in 1966.
The last was Bruce Irvin, who was never a double-digit sack player. The other was another ex-Hurricane, Jerome McDougal.
Irvin played 12 NFL seasons. He began his career as the 15th overall pick with the Seattle Seahawks after off-field troubles. Irvin helped the Seahawks win the Super Bowl in 2013. He also had stints with the Bears, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins, and Oakland Raiders.
Irvin started 104 of his 130 career games played. It is fair to wonder if the Bears would indeed sign up for that (and his 56.5 career sacks) in Mesidor in the 2026 draft.
