Measurables
- 6‘1 Height
- 262 lb. Weight
2025 Stats
- 58 Pressures
- 7 QB Hits
- 2 Sacks
- 17.1% Pressure Rate
- 16.7% Pass Rush Win Rate
- 1 Batted Pass
- 18 Solo Tackles
- 16 Assist Tackles
- 3 Missed Tackles (8.1% Missed Tackle Rate)
- 19 Run Stops
- 3 Penalties
- 1 Blocked Punt
Awards/Accolades
- National Champion (2025)
- College Football National Championship Game Defensive MVP (2025)
- Bednarik Award Semifinalist (2024)
- Third Team All American (2024)
- First Team All BIG10 (2024)
- Lott IMPACT Trophy finalist (2024, IMPACT = Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community, and Tenacity)
- Second Team All Sun Belt (2023)
Strengths
- Explodes off the line with quick burst to win on his first step.
- Natural Leverage at 6’1 and can get under the pads of linemen for power moves.
- Strong Bend around outside shoulder. Good ankle and torso flexibility.
- Constant motor. Plays through the whistle.
- Good arsenal of pass rush moves and counters. Violent punch with speed to power or dip and rip moves.
- Got 10 sacks with IU in 2024, showing a production leap since transferring from playing in Sun Belt to BIG10.
- Can win in the run as a penetrator, dipping under blocks to get in the backfield.
Weaknesses
- Sawed off frame could limit his ability to set the edge in the run in the NFL. Won with speed and leverage which might not work against more flexible pro Tackles.
- Struggled to finish pressures into sacks in 2025.
- Can get overwhelmed by combo blocks in the run game.
- Don’t ask him to drop back in coverage. Not a smooth backpedal and had tight hips. Allowed catches on 90% of his targets.
- Missed 2021 season with an injury. Played through Shoulder/Stinger injury in 2025. Had a lower body injury in the BIG10 Championship as well but returned in the game and avoided serious injury per Head Coach Cignetti. Medical checks at the Scouting Combine will be very important.
Draft Projection
Round 3 Grade
In my Initial Big Board, Mikail Kamara was ranked 95th Overall with a Round 3 Grade. He will rise in the Overall Rankings after his playoff performances, but his grade will remain at Round 3. He dominated against Alabama with 6 Pressures, was used more situationally against Oregon due to some run defense issues but still got 3 Pressures in nearly half the pass rush snaps as the prior week, then finished with his worst pass rush game of the playoffs against Francis Mauigoa with just 2 pressures but his best run defense game and got Defensive MVP with his blocked punt that got recovered for a Touchdown.
Mikail Kamara is a high floor designated pass rusher in this draft class, with his array of moves, leverage, and burst make him a near constant threat on the outside. He’s battle tested against some of the best Tackles in College Football, and outside of a select few he was able to win constantly against them.
The length and edge setting might not be there to complete his profile in the run game and he offers little in coverage, but for 4-3 fronts who don’t drop him back and are willing to rotate him in he will be a smooth fit. Depending on how his medicals check out he could go anywhere from the end of Round 2 to the beginning of Round 4. Some Analysts have him as a Round 4-5 prospect, but I disagree vehemently.
As avid readers of these Scouting Reports might have known for a while now, the Colts need pass rush help in a big way in 2026. With the looming departures of up to 3 Defensive Ends in Free Agency and only the ascending Laiatu Latu and the still relatively unknown JT Tuimoloau under contract, the Colts need to add to the Edge rotation. A designated pass rusher of Kamara’s caliber who can consistently pressure and disrupt QBs would be a big boon. If he can get back to his 2024 sack production levels after his 2025 shoulder/stinger injury is recovered from, then the Colts got a great value. If he struggles to finish pressures into sacks, his quick wins in the pass sets could at least open up clean up sack opportunities for the other Colts Defensive Linemen.
