Khalil Mack


Khalil Delshon Mack is an American football outside linebacker for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He played college football at the University at Buffalo, and was drafted by the Oakland Raiders with the fifth overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.
Mack holds the all-time NCAA record for forced fumbles and is also tied for career tackles for loss in the NCAA. In 2015, he became the first player in NFL history to be selected first-team All-Pro at two different positions, defensive end and linebacker, in the same season. In 2018, Mack was traded to the Bears for two first-round draft picks and signed a six-year, 141 million extension, becoming the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history at the time. He is widely recognized as one of the most dominant defensive players currently playing in the NFL.

Early life

Mack was raised by his parents: high school sweethearts Yolanda, a teacher, and Sandy Mack Sr., a program specialist, in Fort Pierce, Florida. He has two brothers, Sandy, Jr. and LeDarius. His father introduced him to sports at the age of five. Mack took an early liking to baseball and basketball although he played Pop Warner football.
Mack attended Fort Pierce Westwood High School in Fort Pierce. He had played quarterback and was nicknamed "Bombshell Man." However, throwing the ball short was a major struggle for Mack so he became a linebacker. The rest of his athletic career he had been relying on basketball to get him a college scholarship but his plans were dashed by a tear in his patella tendon before his sophomore season. After this injury, his high school football coach, Waides Ashmon, recruited him to the sport, promising Mack and his parents that it would earn him a scholarship.
In his senior year, Mack had 140 tackles, including eight for a loss, and nine sacks. He was named third-team All-State in Florida, as well as first-team All-Area, and helped lead the Panthers to a district championship. Being a newcomer to the sport, he was rated as only a two-star recruit by Rivals.com. He received a scholarship from the State University of New York at Buffalo to play Division I football.

College career

After redshirting as a freshman in 2009, Mack broke into the starting lineup and was one of the most productive defenders in the MAC. He totaled 68 tackles, including 14 and a half for loss, four and a half sacks, ten pass breakups, eight quarterback hurries, and two forced fumbles. He earned third team all-conference honors. He chose to wear the uniform number 46 as a motivational reminder that his true potential was not being recognized – 46 was the overall rating assigned to him in EA Sports' college football video game, NCAA Football 11.
Mack continued where he left off in 2010, with a dominant sophomore season. Mack led the team in sacks, tackles for loss, and forced fumbles, on the way to being named first-team All-MAC. He recorded 64 total tackles, including 20 and a half for loss, five and half sacks, one interception, two pass breakups, thirteen quarterback hurries, and five forced fumbles. Despite being suspended for the first game of the season following an altercation with teammate wide receiver Fred Lee, Mack set career highs in tackles, tackles for loss, and sacks. He also recorded two pass breakups, four quarterback hurries, and four forced fumbles. He earned first team all-conference honors for the second consecutive season.
Starting all 13 games, Mack recorded 100 tackles including 19 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, three interceptions, one which he returned for a touchdown, and forced five fumbles. He won the CFPA Linebacker Trophy for the 2013 season, and he was named the 2013 MAC Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the first Bull to win the award in Buffalo's history within the MAC. He was also named a second-team All-American by the Associated Press. Mack finished tied for first for the NCAA in career tackles for loss with 75 and set a new record for forced fumbles with 16. Buffalo's independent student newspaper, The Spectrum, also ranked Mack as the best Buffalo football player in the Division I history of the program.

College statistics

Records

;Oakland career records
;Buffalo career records
;NCAA records
Leading up to the 2014 NFL Draft, Mack was projected as a high first round pick in many mock drafts. He was selected with the fifth overall pick by the Oakland Raiders, making him the highest selected Buffalo player ever, and the first selected in the first round. Previously, the highest selected player from Buffalo was defensive tackle Gerry Philbin, who was selected with the 33rd overall by the New York Jets in 1964. Mack chose to switch from his college uniform number, 46, to 52 in order to comply with the NFL's numbering rules.

Oakland Raiders

2014 season: Rookie year

After signing a four-year contract worth $18.67 million guaranteed,
Mack made his NFL debut in Week 1 against the New York Jets, In the game, Mack recorded 6 tackles during the 19–14 loss.
In Week 7 against the Arizona Cardinals, Mack recorded a season high 11 tackles during the 24–13 loss.
In Week 11 against the San Diego Chargers, Mack recorded 5 tackles and his first career sack on Philip Rivers during the 13–6 loss.
In Week 14 against the San Francisco 49ers, Mack sacked Colin Kaepernick twice during the 24–13 win. This was Mack's first game with multiple sacks in his career.
During the season, Mack recorded 76 combined tackles, four sacks, one forced fumble, and three pass deflections in 16 games started. By the end of his rookie season, Mack was considered a candidate for AP Defensive Rookie of the Year. Mack eventually finished in third place in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting behind defensive tackle Aaron Donald of the St. Louis Rams and linebacker C. J. Mosley of the Baltimore Ravens. He was, however, named the Defensive Rookie of the Year by analysts on ESPN's NFL Live and was one of three linebackers selected to USA Football's sixth annual All-Fundamentals Team.

2015 season

In March 2015, the NFL amended the league's uniform numbering rules to allow linebackers to wear the numbers 40–49. As a result, Mack considered reverting from the number 52 to 46, the number he wore during his college career, but ultimately decided not to do so. In August 2015, Mack was named as the NFL's number one "making the leap" player. Before the start of the season, Mack shifted from linebacker to right defensive end, and played at both positions.
In Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns, Mack recorded his first two sacks of the season on Josh McCown during the 27–20 win.
In Week 13 against the Detroit Lions, Mack sacked Matthew Stafford twice during the 18–13 loss.
In Week 14 against the Tennessee Titans, Mack recorded another two sacks on rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota during the 24–21 win.
In Week 15 against the Denver Broncos, Mack sacked quarterback Brock Osweiler five times, tying a Raiders franchise record for sacks in a game previously set by defensive end Howie Long in 1983. This was Mack's third game in a row in which he recorded multiple sacks in a single game. The game, which the Raiders won 15–12, was the franchise's first over the Broncos since September 2011. The following week, Mack was announced to be going to the Pro Bowl, his first, along with teammates safety Charles Woodson and fullback Marcel Reece.
Mack finished the season with 77 combined tackles, 15 sacks, two forced fumbles, and two pass deflections in 16 games started.
After the conclusion of the season, Mack became the first player in NFL history to make the AP All-Pro First Team at two positions in the same year; right defensive end and outside linebacker. Mack was ranked 13th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.

2016 season

In week 4 against the Baltimore Ravens, Mack recorded his first sack of the season on Joe Flacco during the 28–27 win.
In week 8 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Mack recorded a team high 7 tackles and sacked Jameis Winston twice during the 30–24 overtime win.
In the following week's game against the Denver Broncos, Mack sacked Trevor Siemian twice with one of them being a strip sack which he also recovered.
On November 27, in a 35–32 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Week 12, Mack recorded his first career interception off of Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and returned it six yards for his first career touchdown. Mack also forced a fumble from Newton in the final minute of the game to seal the win for the Raiders. Mack finished the game with an interception, a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and a defensive touchdown, making him the first player since former Raiders' cornerback Charles Woodson, who was with the Green Bay Packers at the time, in 2009 to do so. His performance earned him AFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 12. Mack also earned AFC Defensive Player of the Month for November, registering four sacks, two forced fumbles, and an interception.
In week 13 against the Buffalo Bills, Mack recorded a strip sack on Tyrod Taylor and recovered the football late in the fourth quarter to seal a 38–24 win.
Mack helped lead the Raiders to their first playoff appearance since the 2002 season and was named to his second consecutive Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro.
In the Wild Card Round of the playoffs against the Houston Texans, Mack recorded a team high 11 tackles during the 27–14 loss.
Mack was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year for the 2016 season. In the 2016 season, Mack recorded 73 combined tackles, 11 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries, 3 passes defended, and an interception returned for a touchdown. He was ranked 5th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017 as the highest-ranked defensive lineman. He was also named the professional winner of the Butkus Award.

2017 season

On April 20, 2017, the Raiders picked up the fifth-year option on Mack's contract. Heading into his fourth season, Mack had his eyes set on the single season sack record.
In week 2 against the New York Jets, Mack recorded his first sack of the season on Josh McCown during the 45–20 win.
In week 3 against the Washington Redskins, Mack recorded a team high 9 tackles and sacked Kirk Cousins once during the 27–10 loss.
In week 4 against the Denver Broncos, Mack sacked quarterback Trevor Siemian twice in during the 16–10 loss.
After the Raiders' Week 10 bye, he registered at least one sack in five consecutive games from Week 11 to 15.
In week 13 against the New York Giants, Mack recorded a strip sack on Geno Smith and recovered the football during the 24–17 win. This was Mack's first forced fumble and fumble recovery of the season.
In week 15 against the Dallas Cowboys, Mack sacked Dak Prescott twice during the 20–17 loss.
On December 19, 2017, Mack was named to his third straight Pro Bowl.
Mack fininished the 2017 season with 78 combined tackles, 10.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and three pass deflections in 16 games started.
He was ranked 16th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.

Chicago Bears

2018 season

On September 1, 2018, following Mack's holdout through the entire preseason, the Raiders traded him, a 2020 second-round pick, and a conditional fifth-round draft pick in 2020 to the Chicago Bears for 2019 and a 2020 first-round pick, as well as 2019 sixth round pick and 2020 third round selections. Shortly after the trade, Mack signed a six-year deal worth $141 million featuring $90 million guaranteed, becoming the highest-paid defender in NFL history.
On September 9, 2018, Mack made his Bears debut on Sunday Night Football against the Green Bay Packers. In the second quarter of the game, he sacked backup quarterback DeShone Kizer and stripped and recovered the ball. Later in the same quarter, he intercepted a pass from Kizer and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown. He became the first player since 1982 to record a sack, forced fumble, a fumble recovery, interception, and touchdown in one half. It was also his second time recording a sack, forced fumble, fumble recovery, interception and touchdown in a single game that dated back to week 12 of the 2016 season. In his second game with the Bears, Mack had four tackles and a strip-sack of Russell Wilson during Chicago's 24–17 Monday Night Football win over the Seattle Seahawks. Mack continued his excellent play in Week 3, recording a strip-sack of Josh Rosen in the 16–14 win over the Arizona Cardinals, the first player to record strip-sacks in three straight games since Mack himself did it in 2016. He had a strip-sack again the following week in a 48–10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mack became the first player to record sacks and forced fumbles in four straight games since the Indianapolis Colts' Robert Mathis in 2005. He is also the first player to record forced fumbles in the first four games of a season since the Jacksonville Jaguars' Tony Brackens in 1999. On October 4, Mack was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month for September. Mack is the first Bears player to win this award since cornerback Charles Tillman in October 2012.
During the Week 6 loss to the Miami Dolphins, Mack suffered a right ankle injury that resulted in him missing the first game of his career two weeks later against the New York Jets. Despite his absence, the Bears limited the Jets to 207 total yards, including just 57 rushing, as Chicago won 24–10. Mack also missed the following week's 41–9 victory over the Buffalo Bills before returning in Week 10 against the Detroit Lions; in the latter's 34–22 Bears win, he sacked Matthew Stafford twice.
During Week 11 against the Minnesota Vikings, Mack sacked quarterback Kirk Cousins once and forced a fumble from running back Dalvin Cook in the 25–20 win. Three games later, against the 11–1 Los Angeles Rams, he forced Jared Goff to fumble in a defensive effort that saw the Bears record four turnovers and win 15–6. During Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers, Mack sacked Aaron Rodgers 2.5 times and had two tackles for losses. On his half-sack, Mack was turned around backward by offensive lineman Jason Spriggs; unable to see Rodgers, Mack helped Bilal Nichols bring Rodgers down for a sack by using his back. The Bears won the game 24–17 and finished atop the NFC North while eliminating the Packers from postseason contention.
Mack finished the regular season with 47 combined tackles, 12.5 sacks, six forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, four pass deflections, and an interception returned for a touchdown in 14 games played with 13 starts; the 12.5 sacks were the most by a Bears player since Richard Dent in 1993. He was later selected to his fourth Pro Bowl and his third first-team All-Pro, though he did not participate in the former due to injury. He received an overall grade of 90.7 from Pro Football Focus in 2018, which ranked as the 2nd highest grade among all qualifying edge defenders. In June 2019, he received his second career pro Butkus Award.

2019 season

During Week 2 against the Denver Broncos, Mack recorded his first sack of the season on Joe Flacco as the Bears won 16–14. In the next game against the Washington Redskins, he sacked quarterback Case Keenum twice and forced two fumbles in a 31–15 road victory. During Week 4 against the Minnesota Vikings, Mack sacked Kirk Cousins 1.5 times and forced him to fumble the ball once in the 16–6 victory. In the next game against his former team, the Oakland Raiders, Mack recorded three tackles in the 24–21 loss. Three weeks later against the Los Angeles Chargers, he recorded his first sack in a month on Philip Rivers in the 17–16 loss. In week 12 against the New York Giants, Mack recorded a strip sack on Daniel Jones which was recovered by teammate Nick Williams in the 19–14 win. In week 14 against the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football, Mack recorded a diving sack on Dak Prescott during the 31–24 win. Mack recorded a sack on Patrick Mahomes in the Bears' 26-3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 16.
On December 17, Mack was named a starter for the 2020 Pro Bowl.
Mack finished the season with 47 combined tackles, 8.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and four pass deflections in 16 games started.

NFL statistics

Regular season

Postseason

Personal life

Mack taught himself to play guitar as a freshman at the University at Buffalo and enjoys singing and writing music. His reputation as a singer led his Raiders teammates to attempt to goad him into singing R. Kelly and Usher songs. He is a fan of musicians Tim McGraw and Hanson. Mack's favorite wing restaurant while he was in college at Buffalo is Elmo's Bar & Restaurant in Getzville, New York.
Mack is an active Christian and spent much of his youth attending a church where his father and mother both served as deacons. Mack also enjoys spending time with his nieces, Malaysia, Maayana and Ma’kiyah, and counts his favorite film as Mary Poppins.
In 2017, Mack's younger brother, LeDarius, joined his alma mater, the University at Buffalo, after two years at ASA College in Miami. LeDarius joined his brother on the Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2020.