A six-year UCLA captain who ran the fastest 40 of any linebacker at his combine and turned that speed into a Commanders roster spot.
Kain Medrano spent parts of six seasons in Westwood before Washington took a flier on him in the sixth round of the 2025 draft. He is now working to carve out a role on defense and special teams as a rookie linebacker on a Commanders roster building around its young core.
Path to the league
Medrano played six seasons at UCLA from 2019 to 2024, growing into a starting role in 2023 before serving as a team captain in his final year. The Commanders drafted him with the 205th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, and he stood out at the combine by posting the fastest 40-yard dash among all linebackers at 4.46 seconds.
Career highlights
Across his UCLA career, Medrano racked up 196 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, three interceptions and five forced fumbles. He earned Third Team All-Big Ten honors in 2024 after a career-high 72 tackles, and he delivered a signature moment with a 38-yard pick-six against Nebraska that November.
2025 season recap
Medrano made the Commanders' active roster as a rookie and appeared in 9 games, recording 5 tackles and a fumble recovery. His workload skewed toward special teams as he adjusts to the speed of the NFL game, with the Pueblo, Colorado native still working to earn a bigger defensive share.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Kain Medrano
- Commanders.com: Commanders draft LB Kain Medrano with 205th overall pick
- ESPN: Kain Medrano
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
9 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | commanders | 3 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2025 | commanders | 9 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Linebacker
- Group
- defense
- College
- UCLA
- Hometown
- Pueblo, CO, USA
- Age
- 25
- Status
- active
Latest news about Kain Medrano
All news →Commanders Edge Seahawks 33-31 in Week 3
Washington Commanders 33, Seattle Seahawks 31 at Northwest Stadium. Marcus Mariota went 19 of 31 for 183 yards with 3 touchdowns.
Sam Darnold Returns With 379 Yards, but Pick-Six Ends Seahawks' 12-Game Winning Streak
Update: Darnold returned in Week 3 and threw for a career-high 379 yards and four touchdowns, but his fourth-quarter pick-six decided a 33-31 loss at Washington that ended Seattle's 12-game winning streak.
