Top-level pass rushers are seen as premium pieces of any great defense, and bringing down quarterbacks is the main way those players can make their presences felt.
Michael Strahan and current Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher TJ Watt are the co-holders of the official single-season sacks record, which is 22.5. Strahan hit that mark in 2001 and Watt did it in 2021.
Al Baker had 23.0 unofficial sacks in 1978, four years before sacks were made an official stat in 1982, so that does not count as an official NFL record.
Can Watt lead the league in sacks for the fourth time, or will a new face accomplish it in 2024?
TJ Watt | +275 |
Micah Parsons | +350 |
Myles Garrett | +400 |
Maxx Crosby | +550 |
Trey Hendrickson | +900 |
Haason Reddick | +1200 |
Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher TJ Watt is the reigning league leader in sacks with 19.0 in 2023, and he has led the entire NFL in sacks in three of the past four seasons. Because of that fact and how he'll be joined on the defensive line by Cameron Heyward and Alex Highsmith, he's the early +275 favorite.
Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys is the second-favorite at +350. He started his career as an inside linebacker before moving out to the edge, and he has posted double-digit sacks in his three NFL seasons while increasing his sack total in each of those years.
Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who tore through opposing offensive lines during the first half of the 2023 season before facing double- and triple-teams on every down, is third in the odds at +400. He ended 2023 with 14.0 sacks and the Defensive Player of the Year Award.
Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby is fourth in the odds at +550. He will play a full season under defensive specialist head coach Antonio Pierce, and he should see more open lanes to opposing QBs thanks to defensive tackle Christian Wilkins joining the team. Crosby has 27 sacks over the past two seasons.
Trey Hendrickson of the Cincinnati Bengals - who requested a trade earlier this offseason - and new New York Jets acquisition Haason Reddick are fifth and sixth in the odds at +900 and +1200 respectively.
Following them are Kansas City Chiefs DT Chris Jones and Nick Bosa, the San Francisco 49ers' NFL Sack leader in 2022, each at +1400. Further back in the market are Detroit Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson and Jacksonville Jaguars pass rusher Josh Allen each at +1600.
Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.