{"id":770505,"date":"2026-02-23T05:40:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T05:40:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/770505\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T05:40:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T05:40:20","slug":"dallas-cowboys-target-35-5-sack-de-akheem-mesidor-in-nfl-draft-to-boost-defense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/770505\/","title":{"rendered":"Dallas Cowboys Target 35.5-Sack DE Akheem Mesidor in NFL Draft to Boost Defense"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Dallas Cowboys<\/a> are still pursuing a Super Bowl<\/a> victory after more than 30 years since their last win. This past season, the team began the Brian Schottenheimer era following their separation from Mike McCarthy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In his first year as head coach, the Cowboys finished with a record of 7-9-1 and boasted one of the best offenses in the league, thanks to Schottenheimer\u2019s play-calling. However, the team’s defense struggled significantly, ranking 30th in total yards allowed (377.0), 23rd in rushing yards allowed (125.5), and last in both passing yards allowed (251.5) and points allowed (30.1).<\/p>\n

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Before the year, the team made headlines by trading star pass rusher Micah Parsons<\/a>. As a result, NFL<\/a>.com’s Gennaro Filice predicts that the Cowboys will look for a replacement for Parsons in the NFL draft. He has them selecting defensive end Akheem Mesidor from the Miami Hurricanes, who has recorded 35.5 sacks throughout his career.<\/p>\n

\"Miami<\/p>\n

Miami Hurricanes defensive lineman Akheem Mesidor (3) celebrates after a sack.Sam Navarro-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

(Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

“After trading\u00a0Micah Parsons\u00a0last August, the Cowboys could lose\u00a0Jadeveon Clowney,\u00a0Dante Fowler Jr.\u00a0and\u00a0Sam Williams\u00a0in free agency,” Filice wrote.<\/a>\u00a0“Donovan Ezeiruaku, last year\u2019s second-round pick, flashed a well-rounded game in Year 1, but he needs some help on the edge. Mesidor might be gone by the time Dallas goes on the clock at No. 20, but the Miami product\u2019s advanced age (turns 25 in April) could push him down the board. On the plus side, he might have the most advanced pass-rushing arsenal in this draft after six seasons (and 52 starts) at the college level.”<\/p>\n

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The effect of drafting Mesidor would be an attempt to stabilize a defense that unraveled after trading Parsons. The Cowboys finished near the bottom of the league in nearly every major defensive category, including last in passing yards and points allowed. That type of regression demands reinforcements off the edge, particularly with potential free-agent departures looming.<\/p>\n

Mesidor\u2019s 35.5 career sacks with the Miami Hurricanes highlight both production and experience. At nearly 25 years old with 52 college starts, he offers a more pro-ready profile than many first-round prospects. For a Dallas team attempting to contend immediately rather than rebuild, maturity and a refined pass-rushing arsenal could outweigh concerns about age.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead to the 2026 season, this pick would define how quickly the Cowboys can reset defensively in the post-Parsons era. Schottenheimer\u2019s offense showed promise, but championship windows close quickly when a defense cannot protect leads. If Mesidor becomes an instant-impact edge presence, Dallas could begin correcting one of the most glaring weaknesses that derailed its season.<\/p>\n

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Related: Dallas Predicted to Make Major Defensive Upgrades in Latest Mock Draft<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports<\/a> on Feb 23, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL<\/a> section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Dallas Cowboys are still pursuing a Super Bowl victory after more than 30 years since their last…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":770506,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2066],"tags":[52319,7730,2886,230,229,257,2461,7377,285,7,9852,4893,100575,2972,491,6,9081,22684,1119],"class_list":{"0":"post-770505","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas-cowboys","8":"tag-akheem-mesidor","9":"tag-arsenal","10":"tag-brian-schottenheimer","11":"tag-cowboys","12":"tag-dallas","13":"tag-dallas-cowboys","14":"tag-dallascowboys","15":"tag-dante-fowler","16":"tag-donovan-ezeiruaku","17":"tag-football","18":"tag-gennaro-filice","19":"tag-jadeveon-clowney","20":"tag-mesidor","21":"tag-miami-hurricanes","22":"tag-micah-parsons","23":"tag-nfl","24":"tag-passing-yards","25":"tag-sam-williams","26":"tag-the-cowboys"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116118346103303068","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770505","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=770505"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770505\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/770506"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=770505"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=770505"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=770505"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}