Who are the 10 best pass rushers in NFL history?

If quarterbacks are the most important players in the game, one could argue that those most responsible for stopping them are the second most important.

The edge rusher position has evolved similarly to that of quarterbacks over the years. When quarterbacks operated more out of the pocket, the best offenses might not have been viewed as the most athletic forces in the league. But as quarterbacks have become dual threats, offenses have followed suit, becoming more athletic to help chase down their opponents.

So let’s take a look at which 10 pass rushers have been the best to do it in NFL history.

1.Bruce Smith

No one tackled more opposing quarterbacks than Smith. The Buffalo Bills great recorded 200 sacks in his career, the most in NFL history. He was a major reason for Buffalo’s success from the late ’80s to mid-’90s, posting double-digit sack seasons 12 times in a 13-year span between 1986 and 1998. The only season in which he did not record a sack in double figures during that stretch, he played in only five games due to knee injuries. Smith, an 11-time All-Pro and Pro Bowler, also won Defensive Player of the Year twice. He had 19 sacks in 1990 when he first won the award, and he recorded 13.5 sacks along with a league-high five forced fumbles in 1996. Smith finished his career in Washington, where he had 29 sacks in his last four seasons before retiring. at 40 years old after the 2003 season.

2. Reggie White

While Smith struck fear into AFC quarterbacks in the 1980s and ’90s, White did the same to NFC quarterbacks. The Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers icon went toe-to-toe with Smith as the league’s best pass rusher during that time, earning All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in all but one season before his first retirement in 1999. He won the Defensive Player award. of the Year for the first time in his career in just his third season, recording 21 sacks in 12 games in 1987. He joined the Packers in 1993, being credited as the player who helped initiate free agency in the NFL. In his fourth season in Green Bay, White helped the Packers win a Super Bowl. He had a record three sacks in his victory in Super Bowl XXXI before winning Defensive Player of the Year again in 1998, when he had 16 sacks. White finished his career with seven top-five finishes in Defensive Player of the Year voting and won the sacks title twice. His 198 career sacks are the second most of all time.

3. Lawrence Taylor

The New York Giants’ rise to prominence in the 1980s was due in large part to Taylor. The Hall of Famer arguably had the most dominant stretch of peak play in NFL history, becoming the second defensive player to win MVP in 1986. Taylor had a league-leading 20.5 sacks that season, which helped him win the Defensive Player of the Year award for the third time. moment in his career. He also helped the Giants win the Super Bowl that season, recording a pick-six in one of their playoff victories. Taylor continued his play as one of the game’s best edge rushers through the end of the decade, recording at least 10 sacks in every season until 1990. The 1990 season ended with Taylor winning his second Super Bowl, recovering a key fumble. in your NFC. Championship game victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Taylor retired after the 1993 season, finishing his career with 132.5 official sacks. As official catches were not recorded until 1982, some of Taylor’s catches early in his career do not count towards the official record. He also played inside linebacker for a time early in his career, which likely affected his all-time sack total.

4. July Peppers

After being a two-sport star at North Carolina, Peppers emerged as one of the game’s best pass rushers from the 2000s to the 2010s. Peppers earned First Team All-Pro three times and nine Pro Bowl nods during his 17-year career (2002-18), emerging as a pass-rushing threat in nearly every season of his career. His 12 sacks and five forced fumbles as a rookie helped him win Defensive Rookie of the Year. A year later, Peppers helped the Carolina Panthers reach Super Bowl XXXVIII. He recorded at least 10 sacks in seven of the next nine seasons after helping the Panthers reach the Super Bowl in 2003. While Peppers recorded a career-high 14.5 sacks in 2008, he also demonstrated his ability to be a complete player. He recorded a league-leading 18 tackles for loss in 2006. He also ranked in the top five in forced fumbles five times, finishing his career with 52. Peppers’ 159.5 sacks are the fourth-most ever, while that his 52 forced fumbles are second. the most in NFL history, helping him become a Hall of Famer in 2024.

5. Michael Strahan

Like the other Giants icon mentioned before him, Strahan had some of the best seasons ever for an edge rusher. His 2001 season might be the best ever for a pass rusher, as he posted an NFL-record 22.5 sacks and a league-leading six forced fumbles that season. Strahan stood alone for the most sacks in a single season until TJ Watt reached that mark in 2021. That season helped Strahan win his first and only Defensive Player of the Year award and earned him one of his seven NFL nominations. Pro Bowl and one of his six. All-Pro honors. Strahan again led the league in sacks in 2003 when he had 18.5. The other peak of Strahan’s career, however, came in 2007, when he helped the Giants pull off one of the biggest upsets in NFL history by beating the previously undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. He had a sack in that game after recording two forced fumbles earlier that postseason. That Super Bowl victory ended up being Strahan’s last game, as he finished with 141.5 sacks, the sixth-most in NFL history.

6. Kevin Greene

Possibly overshadowed by players like Smith, White and Taylor, Greene might be one of the most overlooked players in NFL history. Greene was one of the most consistent pass rushers of all time, recording at least 10 sacks in the final 12 seasons of his career, as he did not play much in the first three seasons. He only received five Pro Bowl and three All-Pro nods despite his consistent success in taking down opposing quarterbacks. However, Greene’s 160 sacks are the third most in NFL history, and he helped the Pittsburgh Steelers reach the Super Bowl in 1995 after an eight-year stint with the Los Angeles Rams. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016.

7. Chris Doleman

Doleman also might have received a little less shine due to playing at the same time as other all-time greats in the prime of their careers. But he was also a force to be reckoned with for much of his 15-year career (1985-99), recording at least eight sacks in all but four seasons. His 21-sack season with the Minnesota Vikings in 1989 was the fourth-most sacks recorded in NFL history at the time, helping him receive one of eight Pro Bowl nods and one of two All-Star honors. -Pro of his career. Doleman, who also spent time with the Atlanta Falcons and San Francisco 49ers, finished his career with 150.5 sacks, the fifth-most in NFL history.

8. Jason Taylor

Taylor arguably helped revolutionize the edge rusher position to become more athletic. His build helped him become one of the game’s best pass rushers in the 2000s, recording 100.5 sacks in an eight-year span between 2000 and 2007. He had an 18.5-sack season with the Miami Dolphins in 2002. and a 13.5-sack season in 2006. In the 2006 season, he led the league in pick-sixes (two) and forced fumbles. As Taylor had six Pro Bowl and four All-Pro honors in his career, he is seventh all-time in sacks (139.5), fifth in forced fumbles (46) and first in fumble recoveries returned for touchdowns. (six).

9. DeMarcus Articles

Ware helped the running back develop into a more athletic position when he emerged with the Dallas Cowboys in 2005 until the end of his career with the Denver Broncos in 2016. He produced immediately for the Cowboys, recording eight sacks as a rookie in 2005 before put up with. seven consecutive seasons of at least 10 sacks. His 20-sack season in 2008 was one of two times he led the league in sacks and one of three years he led the league in tackles for loss. He became a Pro Bowl mainstay during his time in Dallas, earning nine Pro Bowl nods in his career, along with seven All-Pro honors. He continued to play at a high level when he joined the Broncos in 2014, recording 10 sacks that season. He had 7.5 sacks in just 11 games the following year, which ended with a Super Bowl title for the Broncos. He had two clues in his Super Bowl victory. His 138.5 sacks are the ninth most in NFL history.

10. J.J. Watt

No player may have been better in the first five seasons of his career than Watt. The Houston Texans great was arguably the best player in football for most of that period, earning four Pro Bowl nods, four first-team All-Pro honors and three-time Defensive Player of the Year. Watt’s 2014 season is considered by some to be one of the best quarterbackless seasons in recent memory. That year he recorded 20.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries. He also had 119 pressures, which is the most in a single season since Pro Football Focus began tracking the statistic in 2006. Watt finished second in MVP voting that year, becoming the closest defensive player to winning the award since Taylor’s victory in 1986. It somewhat derailed Watt’s career after his third Defensive Player of the Year win in 2015, playing eight or fewer games in four of his final seven seasons. But his peak was too good to ignore, earning him a spot on this list.

Honorable mentions

• howie long
• Terrell Suggs
• Richard Dent
• Jared Allen
• John Abraham

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