Mekhi Wingo scouting report: Exploring the LSU interior defensive lineman's strengths and weaknesses

A three-star recruit in 2021, after one year at Missouri (two TFLs, one sack and a pick-six), Mekhi Wingo transferred to LSU, where he tripled his TFL and sack numbers in five additional games, along with four passes batted down, one fumble forced and two recovered. Thanks to that, he was named a second-team All-SEC selection (in 2022).

This past season, Mekhi Wingo was limited eight appearances due to requiring surgery for a lower-body injury, but did collect 25 total stops, five TFLs and 4.5 sacks.

Profile: 6 foot, 285 pounds, JR.

Breaking down Mekhi Wingo's scouting report

Run defense:

• Offers a rapid get-off, low pad-level and that play-making ability to disrupt the offensive backfield
• You see Wingo legitimately bench-press SEC guards and disengage to shoot through creases in the run game
• Those interior blockers land on the turf a couple of times every game, as he pulls them off himself late
• Frequently demand two bodies and doesn’t allow one of them to limb up to the linebacker on combos before they can shoot the gap or back-door them
• On the front-side of concepts, he has the lateral mobility to stay square with blockers, yet he also does a nice job of turning his shoulder in order to work down the line with the ball in front of him
• Sudden in condensed space, where it appears the ball-carrier has a crease and on the spur of the moment, they’re getting their legs wrapped up as Wingo comes off his block
• Proved his great stamina as a sophomore (2022), when his 821 snaps were 31 more than any other interior defensive linemen in college football – missed the second half of the season but did return for the bowl game
• His 84.3 run-defense grade in 2022 put him behind only Georgia’s Jalen Carter and Nazir Stackhouse among SEC interior defensive linemen, while he hit a 75.0 this past season

Pass-rush:

• Has plus snap anticipation and is able to dictate terms that way in defined passing situations, especially if they can’t slide in front of him in time
• When he can attack through the inside shoulder of guards sliding towards him, Wingo has the raw force to pretty much take a direct path towards the quarterback and either flush that guy or quicken his process
• Packs a nice push-pull move and then can swim over the top if interior blockers brace against power
• Capable of winning across the face of interior linemen, paired with a tight club-swim move
• Showcases an impressive ability to disconnect his upper and lower half as he tries to squeeze past blockers, where you’ll see his pads be perpendicular to the ground at times
• Is regularly able to corner his rushes even through contact rather than getting pushed up the field as he’s at the hip of pass-protectors while pushing down their near-arm
• Always seems to get one of those big paws up shortly before the ball comes out, when he can’t get home
• Even if the ball comes out quickly or there are screens to the perimeter, you appreciate Wingo’s hustle to chase after it
• Had his most productive season rushing the passer on a per-play basis in 2023, with 19 total QB pressures across 239 pass-rush snaps

Weaknesses:

• Being undersized for the position, Wingo will need to work on his skills for deconstructions blocks in the run game and not have to pursue the ball through contact as regularly
• Tries to freelance a little bit too much getting into the backfield instead of always taking the optimal track to where the ball will go
• Too often gets stalled at the line and is just looking to get his hands up against the pass, which having only 32-inch arms doesn’t help with either
• If he gets stood up a bit early or just isn’t able to create that initial momentum, Wingo tends to get too straight-legged later in the rep
• Can have a difficult time getting off blocks and win with different pass-rush moves – logged only 44 combined pressures across 676 pass-rush snaps over two years with LSU

Mekhi Wingo's 2024 NFL Draft prospect

Playing alongside two five-star recruits in Maason Smith and Harold Perkins Jr., Mekhi Wingo wasn’t in the spotlight a whole lot these last two years once he arrived in Baton Rouge, but you can argue that he was the most consistent player and the straw that stirred the drink for the Tigers during that time.

His ability to get off the ball and take advantage of his natural leverage advantage, getting under and pulling off blockers with the quicks to get his hands on the ball-carrier really stood out. In passing situations, if your guys didn’t slide in front of him right away or ended up oversetting, he could really cause problems with fluid execution of hand swipes and his ability to cross-face guys.

Now, the length he’s missing becomes an issue when he can’t defeat the hands early and has to actually shed blockers once they’re latched into his frame and he’ll need to develop counters he can access before his opponents gain control of the rep, but he has enough power to complement the quickness he brings to the table.

Mekhi Wingo put together an excellent all-around combine performance, changing directions well and tightly working around the bags, after already running a 4.85 in the 40 (only topped by Florida State’s Braden Fiske among the IDL), plus he showcased tremendous football character when he made it a priority to return from surgery for LSU’s bowl game and basically ended the final two drives with sacks.

Grade: Third round