Florida State’s pass rush has struggled to finish through three games, with the Desir twins highlighting a unit searching for answers.
The Florida State Seminoles entered 2026 believing its defensive front could become one of the strengths of Tony White’s defense.
Three games in, the numbers are painting a much different picture.
The Seminoles currently own a 64.5 pass-rush grade per Pro Football Focus (PFF), tied for 104th nationally with UTSA and ACC rival Clemson. Florida State has generated 37 total pressures but just has four sacks. Even the traditional numbers tell a similar story: FSU is averaging only 1.33 sacks per game, tied for 96th nationally.
That lack of finishing is especially concerning considering what Florida State expected from Mandrell and Darryll Desir.
Mandrell Desir entered the season after recording 6.5 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss as a true freshman, production that led all ACC freshmen.
Through three games this season, however, his pass-rush production has been quiet.
PFF has Desir at a 66.2 pass-rush grade across 71 rushes. He has generated just two pressures, one hit and one hurry, with no sacks. His 1.4 pass-rush productivity rating and 13% win rate illustrate the problem: he is playing plenty of snaps without consistently affecting the quarterback.
Against Alabama, Desir rushed 23 times and produced just one pressure. Against SMU, he managed one pressure on 20 opportunities.
Darryll Desir has been better, but not enough to carry the unit.
His 73.3 overall pass-rush grade leads Florida State’s regular defensive linemen. Desir has four pressures on 34 pass-rush snaps, but all four have been hurries. He has yet to record a sack or quarterback hit. His 24.2% pass-rush win rate suggests he is beating blocks, but those wins have not consistently turned into meaningful disruption.
Florida State isn’t simply looking for players who can make an offensive tackle work. The Seminoles need somebody who can wreck a possession.
The issues extend beyond the twins.
Rylan Kennedy leads FSU with six pressures and has one of its three sacks, but his overall pass-rush grade sits at 68.5. Jalen Anderson has seven pressures on 68 rushes, yet grades at just 63.4 with a 13.8% win rate. Deamontae Diggs has three hurries on 54 pass-rush opportunities and a 53.2 grade.
The interior hasn’t provided much relief, either. Daniel Lyons has two pressures across 68 rushes. Kevin Wynn has yet to register one on 18 attempts. Jordan Sanders has none on 21.
FSU generated 14 pressures on 171 individual pass-rush opportunities, but only one became a sack. Against SMU, the Seminoles produced 10 pressures without recording a sack.
Pressure without finishing can still affect quarterbacks, but Florida State’s defense hasn’t been good enough elsewhere to survive that tradeoff. The Seminoles are allowing 340.7 passing yards per game, ranking near the bottom of the FBS nationally, while opponents are converting 51.2% of their third downs.
That puts even more responsibility on the front.
Florida State does not necessarily need one dominant pass rusher. It needs several players to turn more of their opportunities into hits, sacks and disrupted throws.
Darryll Desir is winning often enough to suggest more production could be coming. Mandrell Desir has already demonstrated what he can do after his freshman season.
But through three games, the Seminoles have a collection of pass rushers producing occasional pressure rather than a pass rush consistently changing games.
For a defense with problems on the back end, that difference is becoming increasingly difficult to hide.
