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Fox Sports
5 days ago
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Which 10 players have recorded the most sacks ever in an NFL season?
If quarterback play is the most valuable thing in football, then the most valuable thing on the defensive side of the ball is getting after the quarterback. NFL teams seem to agree with that sentiment as well. In this offseason, three edge rushers have earned extensions that will pay them at least $35 million per year in average annual salary – Myles Garrett, Maxx Crosby, and Danielle Hunter – as money at that position continues to rise. But with a higher salary comes higher expectations. As each of those players looks to prove their team right by investing in them, let's take a look at the 10 highest-sack seasons in NFL history. T8. Lawrence Taylor: 20.5 (1986) Taylor's 1986 campaign is viewed by some as one of the best ever by a defensive player. He won his third Defensive Player of the Year Award and became the first defensive player in NFL history to unanimously win MVP. In the postseason, Taylor recorded a pick-six off Joe Montana in the divisional round en route to winning a Super Bowl. T8. J.J. Watt: 20.5 (2012) After impressing as a rookie in 2011, Watt popped off in his second season. He recorded 20.5 sacks and had an NFL-record 39 tackles for loss that year. He also had two forced fumbles, helping him win his first of three Defensive Player of the Year Awards. T8. J.J. Watt: 20.5 (2014) Two years after he crossed the 20-sack threshold, Watt did it again in 2014. Even though he set the tackles for loss record in 2012, some not only regard 2014 as the best year in Watt's career, but also the best season ever for an edge rusher. Watt led the league in fumble recoveries (four) and tackles for loss (29) to go with five forced fumbles that season. Additionally, he recorded an interception, which he returned 80 yards for a touchdown. Watt's 2014 season was also historic by Pro Football Focus' standards. He recorded 119 pressures that season, the most ever recorded by a player since PFF began tracking the stat in 2006. T8. Aaron Donald: 20.5 (2018) Along with Watt and Taylor, Donald is one of three players in NFL history to win Defensive Player of the Year three times. The best of those three seasons for the former Los Angeles Rams star came in 2018, when he recorded 20.5 sacks, 59 total tackles, a league-leading 25 tackles for loss and four forced fumbles. He also had 106 pressures that year, per PFF. T-6. Reggie White: 21 (1987) You don't fall two sacks short of having the most sacks in NFL history without having an all-time great sack season. White had 21 sacks, along with 76 total tackles, when he was with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1987. It marked the first of two straight years in which White led the league in sacks, which only a few other players have ever done. It was also one of his five seasons with 15-plus sacks and nine with 10-plus sacks, which are both the most in NFL history. T-6. Chris Doleman: 21 (1989) Nearly two decades after the Minnesota Vikings had their "Purple People Eaters" defense, they had someone who would've fit right in with that group in the late 1980s. Doleman recorded 21 sacks in 1989, marking a surge into stardom for him as he also had 94 total tackles and five forced fumbles that year. T-3. Mark Gastineau: 22 (1984) In the final years of the Jets' "New York Sack Exchange" era, Gastineau had what was at the time the best season ever for a pass rusher in NFL history. He recorded 22 sacks in 1984, getting a scoop-and-score touchdown that year. T-3. Jared Allen: 22 (2011) In the midst of his seven-year streak of double-digit sacks, Allen broke the 20-sack mark in 2011. He had 22 that year, leading the league in sacks for the second time in his career. He also had 66 total tackles and four forced fumbles, falling just seven votes short of winning Defensive Player of the Year. T-3. Justin Houston: 22 (2014) While Watt's 20.5-sack season won him Defensive Player of the Year in 2014, he didn't have the most sacks that season. Houston recorded 22 sacks with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2014, adding 69 combined tackles and four forced fumbles to go with them. Four of his sacks came in the Chiefs' regular-season finale, surprisingly bringing him within a half-sack of the all-time record. T-1. Michael Strahan: 22.5 (2001) Strahan broke Gastineau's 17-year record in 2001, doing so when he took down Brett Favre in the New York Giants' regular-season finale loss to the Green Bay Packers. Some have debated whether Favre purposely took a dive in that game to allow Strahan to break the record, but it still went down as a sack. Strahan actually recorded 3.5 sacks in the week prior, giving him the opportunity to break Gastineau's record. T-1. T.J. Watt: 22.5 (2021) Watt matched Strahan's record in 2021. While the 2021 season marked the first year the NFL played 17 regular-season games, Watt only played in 15 games. Just like Strahan, Watt also went off in the penultimate week of the regular season to allow him to match the record, recording four sacks in a game against the Cleveland Browns. The Pittsburgh Steelers' great recorded 64 total tackles and five forced fumbles that year, too. Check out all of our Daily Rankers. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account , and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! recommended Get more from National Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cowboys offensive lineman Tom Rafferty, who played 14 seasons with Dallas, dies at 70
Tom Rafferty, who played 14 seasons for the Dallas Cowboys as an offensive lineman and won a Super Bowl championship with the team, died on Thursday at the age of 70. Rafferty had been hospitalized in Windsor, Colorado since suffering a stroke in early May, his daughter told the Dallas Morning News. Advertisement The Cowboys' fourth-round pick (No. 119 overall) out of Penn State in 1976, Rafferty played his first five NFL seasons at guard before moving to center for the remainder of his career. He started 182 out of a possible 203 games, including 167 consecutive starts. 'If you look at his dimensions [6-foot-3, 256 pounds], he wouldn't be playing in the offensive line today.' longtime Cowboys radio broadcaster Brad Sham told the Dallas Morning News. 'But that's what [coach Tom Landry] wanted. He wanted pulling linemen and guys who could get downfield in front of [Tony] Dorsett on a screen pass." Rafferty threw a key block for Dorsett's NFL-record 99-yard touchdown run on Jan. 3, 1983 versus the Minnesota Vikings. Amazingly, Dallas only had 10 men on the field for that play. For the past 17 years, Rafferty had battled transverse myelitis, a disorder that affects the central nervous system. He was hospitalized for 48 days and refused to use a wheelchair. Advertisement "He just kept at it until he could walk again,' recalled Rafferty's daughter, Rachel Powers. 'No sensation below his waist, but he made it happen." Rafferty was one of 12 players in franchise history to play at least 14 years for the Cowboys. In his second season, Dallas defeated the Denver Broncos to win Super Bowl XII. The Cowboys lost Super Bowl XIII to the Pittsburgh Steelers the following year. His final season was 1989 for a 1-15 Cowboys team during Hall of Famer Troy Aikman's rookie year. With Aikman and Roger Staubach, Rafferty played with two Hall of Fame quarterbacks.
The Herald Scotland
30-05-2025
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Ravens' John Harbaugh: Cutting Justin Tucker was 'complex decision'
Harbaugh acknowledged releasing Tucker came at the end of "a complex decision-making process" but continued to insist it was a football decision. "I mean, you're talking about arguably the best kicker in the history of the game," Harbaugh told reporters after Baltimore's second OTA session of the offseason. "And like we said, it's multi-layered, it's complicated. But in the end, it all comes back to what you have to do to get ready for your team to play the first game." "I think if you step back and you take a look at all the issues and all the ramifications, you can understand that we've got to get our football team ready and we've got to have a kicker ready to go," Harbaugh added. "And that was the move that we decided to make. So in that sense, it's a football decision." Tucker spent 13 total seasons as the Ravens' top kicker after signing as an undrafted free agent in 2012. He was named an All-Pro first teamer five times during his career and wrapped up his time in Baltimore having made an NFL-record 89.103% of his field goal attempts. The Ravens are having two rookies - Tyler Loop and John Hoyland - compete to replace Tucker. Loop holds the distinction of being the first kicker ever drafted by the Ravens after they spent a sixth-round pick on the Arizona product. Meanwhile, Hoyland signed as an undrafted free agent out of Wyoming. Harbaugh - who spent nine seasons as the special teams coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1998 to 2006 before becoming Baltimore's coach in 2008 - noted the Ravens are planning "to spend all of our focus and our time to get these kickers ready." "We've got a competition going on and [we've got to] get these guys ready to make kicks," Harbaugh said. "So that's all I'm thinking about. From my perspective, it's like, 'We have to have a kicker out there making kicks,' and what's the best way to get that done?"
USA Today
29-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Ravens' John Harbaugh explains 'complex' decision to release Justin Tucker
Ravens' John Harbaugh explains 'complex' decision to release Justin Tucker Show Caption Hide Caption Ravens release kicker Justin Tucker after massage therapist allgations Ravens release kicker Justin Tucker, who was accused of sexual misconduct by 16 different employees of eight Baltimore area spas and wellness centers. Sports Pulse Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh spoke to reporters Wednesday for the first time since the team released longtime kicker Justin Tucker on May 5. Tucker's release came as the NFL investigated accusations of sexual misconduct against the 35-year-old kicker. He denied the allegations, calling them "simply not true." Harbaugh acknowledged releasing Tucker came at the end of "a complex decision-making process" but continued to insist it was a football decision. "I mean, you're talking about arguably the best kicker in the history of the game," Harbaugh told reporters after Baltimore's second OTA session of the offseason. "And like we said, it's multi-layered, it's complicated. But in the end, it all comes back to what you have to do to get ready for your team to play the first game." "I think if you step back and you take a look at all the issues and all the ramifications, you can understand that we've got to get our football team ready and we've got to have a kicker ready to go," Harbaugh added. "And that was the move that we decided to make. So in that sense, it's a football decision." Tucker spent 13 total seasons as the Ravens' top kicker after signing as an undrafted free agent in 2012. He was named an All-Pro first teamer five times during his career and wrapped up his time in Baltimore having made an NFL-record 89.103% of his field goal attempts. The Ravens are having two rookies – Tyler Loop and John Hoyland – compete to replace Tucker. Loop holds the distinction of being the first kicker ever drafted by the Ravens after they spent a sixth-round pick on the Arizona product. Meanwhile, Hoyland signed as an undrafted free agent out of Wyoming. Harbaugh – who spent nine seasons as the special teams coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1998 to 2006 before becoming Baltimore's coach in 2008 – noted the Ravens are planning "to spend all of our focus and our time to get these kickers ready." "We've got a competition going on and [we've got to] get these guys ready to make kicks," Harbaugh said. "So that's all I'm thinking about. From my perspective, it's like, 'We have to have a kicker out there making kicks,' and what's the best way to get that done?"
USA Today
23-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
New Dolphins special teams coordinator weighs in on punter competition
New Dolphins special teams coordinator weighs in on punter competition When Miami Dolphins special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman joined the team earlier this offseason, it didn't take long for the coach to be reunited with punter Ryan Stonehouse. The duo spent close to two seasons together with the Tennessee Titans before Aukerman was let go late in the 2023 season. Now Stonehouse is also in his first season with the Dolphins and will compete with Jake Bailey to be Miami's punter this fall. "My major thing is I'm all about competition," Aukerman said. "Jake (Bailey) is an All-Pro punter. Ryan Stonehouse is an All-Pro punter. When an opportunity arose that Ryan was free, hey, let's bring him down here. Nothing is guaranteed to anybody" But Aukerman says he didn't have a huge hand in the reunion actually coming to fruition. "I have good dialogue with Coach Mike (McDaniel) and with Chris (Grier), whether they're coming in my office or me going in there. There's always going to be dialogue between us, but they handle the roster so that stuff, I wouldn't say I have a big-time role in it. I give my opinion on certain things and I let them handle the roster,' Aukerman said. In two seasons with the Dolphins, Bailey has averaged 46.4 yards per punt -- an improvement from the 45.9 yards he averaged in four season with the New England Patriots. However, Bailey was much better in placement for the Patriots, pinning 45.9 percent of his punts inside the 20-yard line in New England. That number has dropped to 38.5 percent in his two years in Miami. Stonehouse burst on to the NFL scene in 2022 when he earned Second Team All-Pro honors by averaging an NFL-record 53.1 yards per punt -- a number he matched in 2023. But his low hang time frustrated coaches and eventually resulted in a relatively surprising split with the Titans. Winning the job with the Dolphins will take more than just big kicks from either player, though. 'I think everything – holding, punting, directional punting, distance, hang time – all that stuff [plays a role]," Aukerman said. "Obviously Jake (Bailey) has a lot of reps with Jason (Sanders), but it's also going to be our job to get Ryan (Stonehouse) and Jason ready just in case he ends up winning the job. "Jason had an unbelievable year and I credit Jake with that, too, because it's tough to go through a bunch of long snappers in a season and I thought those guys handled it like pros last year. Obviously, Jason had one of his best years of his career which was unbelievable. Yeah, everything will be factored into the competition.' Sanders has had several holders in his seven seasons in South Florida, and last season Bailey helped him to a 90.2 field goals made percentage, the second-best of his career. Sanders also enters 2025 with the NFL's longest active consecutive kicks made streak at 27, including nine from 50-plus yards. "It's all about competition and the thing that I love about competition, it makes the guys step up their game, and I think this is going to be big for both of them," Aukerman said.
