Khalil Mack (Kah-leel; born February 22, 1991) is an American professional football outside linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Buffalo Bulls and was selected by the Oakland Raiders with the fifth overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft.
Mack set 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 outside linebacker, in the same season. Three years later, Mack was traded to the Chicago 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 was traded to the Chargers in 2022.
Mack was raised by his parents: Yolanda, a teacher, and Sandy Mack Sr., a program specialist, in Fort Pierce, Florida. He has two brothers: Sandy Jr. and LeDarius. Mack's father introduced him to sports at age 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. For the majority of his athletic career, Mack 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 Mack to the sport, promising him and his parents that it would earn him a scholarship. Mack had played quarterback and was nicknamed "Bombshell Man." However, throwing the ball short was a major struggle for Mack, so he decided to become a linebacker.
In his only year of high school football, 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, Mack was rated as only a two-star recruit by Rivals.com and was not rated by ESPN's recruiting service. He received a scholarship from the University at Buffalo to play Division I football.
After redshirting as a freshman in 2009, Mack broke into the Bulls' starting lineup and was one of the most productive defenders in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). He totaled 68 tackles, including 14+1⁄2 for loss, 4+1⁄2 sacks, 10 pass breakups, eight quarterback hurries, and two forced fumbles. Mack 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 (out of a maximum of 99) 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+1⁄2 for loss (third best in the nation), 5+1⁄2 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 (94), tackles for loss (21 – fourth in the nation), and sacks (8). He also recorded two pass breakups, four quarterback hurries, and four forced fumbles. Mack 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 of which he returned for a touchdown, and forced five fumbles. Mack won the CFPA Linebacker Trophy for the 2013 season, and 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 (1999–present). He was also named a second-team All-American by the Associated Press (AP). 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. Mack was elected to the University at Buffalo Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2024.
Leading up to the 2014 NFL draft, Mack was projected as a high first-round pick in many mock drafts.
Mack was selected with the fifth overall pick by the Oakland Raiders, making him the highest selected Buffalo player ever, and the only one selected in the first round. Previously, the highest selected player from Buffalo was defensive tackle Gerry Philbin, who was selected with the 33rd overall pick 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. After signing a four-year contract worth $18.67 million guaranteed, Mack made his NFL debut in the season-opener against the Jets, recording six tackles during the 19–14 loss. During Week 7 against the Arizona Cardinals, he recorded a season-high 11 tackles in the 24–13 loss. During a Week 11 13–6 road loss to the San Diego Chargers, Mack recorded five tackles and his first career sack on Philip Rivers. Three weeks later against the San Francisco 49ers, Mack recorded two tackles and sacked Colin Kaepernick twice in the 24–13 victory. This was Mack's first game with multiple sacks in his career.
Mack finished his rookie year with 76 combined tackles (59 solo), four sacks, a forced fumble, and three pass deflections in 16 games and starts. By the end of his rookie season, Mack was considered a candidate for AP Defensive Rookie of the Year. He 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. However, Mack was 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 (the others being All-Pro veterans Luke Kuechly of the Carolina Panthers and Tamba Hali of the Kansas City Chiefs). He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team. He was ranked 49th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015.
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, he shifted from linebacker to right defensive end and played at both positions.
During a Week 3 27–20 road victory over the Cleveland Browns, Mack recorded four tackles and his first two sacks of the season on Josh McCown. During a Week 13 18–13 road loss to the Detroit Lions, he had eight tackles and sacked Matthew Stafford twice. In the next game against the Tennessee Titans, Mack recorded six tackles and another two sacks on rookie Marcus Mariota during the 24–21 road victory.
During a Week 15 road matchup against the Denver Broncos, Mack sacked Brock Osweiler five times, tying a 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. The game, which the Raiders won 15–12, was the franchise's first victory over the Broncos since September 2011. The following week, Mack was voted to his first Pro Bowl, along with teammates safety Charles Woodson and fullback Marcel Reece.
Mack finished his second professional season with 77 combined tackles (57 solo), 15 sacks, two forced fumbles, and two pass deflections in 16 games and starts. At the end 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. He was ranked 13th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.