Ingridiron football, asack occurs when thequarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) istackled behind theline of scrimmage before throwing aforward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "pocket" and without clear intent, or when a passer runs out of bounds behind the line of scrimmage due to defensive pressure.^[1] This often occurs if the opposing team'sdefensive line,linebackers ordefensive backs are able to applypass pressure (also called apass rush) to quickly get pastblocking players of theoffensive team (the quarterback's protection), or if the quarterback is unable to find a back to hand the ball off to or an availableeligible receiver (includingwide receivers,running backs andtight ends) to catch the ball, allowing the defense a longer opportunity to tackle the quarterback.

QuarterbackMatthew Stafford being sacked by multipleWashington Football Team players.

Performing a sack is advantageous for the defending team as the offense loses adown, and the line of scrimmage retreats several yards.^[2] Even better for the defense is a sack causing the quarterback tofumble the ball at or behind the line of scrimmage; this is also known as a strip sack and can result in aturnover if the defense manages to obtain the ball. A quarterback who is pressured but avoids a sack can still be adversely affected by being forced to hurry.

The quarterback must pass the statistical line of scrimmage to avoid the sack. If a passer is sacked in his own end zone, the result is asafety and the defending team is awarded two points. If the football is fumbled and recovered either inside the end zone by the defense, or outside the end zone and is returned to the end zone this results in atouchdown for the defense.

To be considered a sack, the quarterback must intend to throw a forward pass. If the play is designed for the quarterback to rush (run) the ball, any loss is subtracted from the quarterback's rushing total (and the play is ruled atackle for loss as opposed to a sack). If the quarterback's intent is not obvious, statisticians use certain criteria, such as the offensive line blocking scheme, to decide. Unique situations where a loss reduces a quarterback's rushing total (not a sack) are "kneel downs" (used to run time off the game clock).

A player will receive credit for half of a sack when multiple players contribute to the sacking of a quarterback, even if more than two players contributed.

In theNational Football League (NFL), it is possible to record a sack for zero yards. TheNFL subtracts yards lost due to sacks from teams' passing totals (though the quarterback's individual passing total stats remain unchanged),^[3] while theNCAA subtracts sack yardage from individual rushing totals.^[4]

The termsack was first popularized in the 1960s byHall of Fame defensive endDeacon Jones, who felt that a quarterback being sacked devastated the offense in the same way thata city was devastated when it was sacked.^[5][6] In 1999, Jones provided aLos Angeles Times reporter with some other detailed imagery about his forte: "You take all the offensive linemen and put them in aburlap bag, and then you take a baseball bat and beat on the bag. You're sacking them, you're bagging them. And that’s what you're doing with a quarterback."^[7]

According to former NFL coachMarv Levy,Washington Redskins coachGeorge Allen may have coined the term when referring toDallas Cowboys quarterbackCraig Morton^[8] when he purportedly stated before a game, "Before we play those Dallas Cowboys, we’re going to take that Morton salt and pour him into a sack."

Prior tosack, the termdump was often used, as the NFL's statistical office recorded all sacks under "dumping the passer".^[2]

The NFL only began to keep track of times passers lost yardage in 1961^[9] and no credit was given to the defensive player responsible until 1982.^[10] Researcher John Turney of thePro Football Researchers Association estimated that Jones recorded 173½ sacks in his career.^[11]

Controversial NFL rule changes made for the2018 season prohibit tacklers from landing on the quarterback after making a sack, with the punishment being aroughing the passer penalty.^[12]

Of all forms of defensive pressure against the opposition's passer, sacks provide the most immediate impact by ending the offensive play.^[13] However, quarterbacks sometimes avoid a sack by throwing anincomplete pass or risking aninterception.^[14] According toFootball Outsiders, a quarterback hurry is the most common form of pass pressure. In the2009 NFL season, there were 1,106 sacks and 3,268 hurries, and a hurried quarterback generally averaged fewer yards per pass play compared to the average pass play.^[13]

These records are from 1982 onwards, the year the NFL started officially recording sacks.^[10]

• NFL single-season sacks: 22.5,T. J. Watt, 2021 andMichael Strahan, 2001
• NFL career sacks: 200,Bruce Smith, 1985–2003
• NFL single-game sacks: 7,Derrick Thomas, November 11, 1990 vs. Seattle Seahawks^{[note 1]}
• NFL sacks, rookie season: 14.5,Jevon Kearse, 1999
• NFL seasons leading league in sacks: 3, T. J. Watt, 2020, 2021, 2023^[16]
• NFL seasons with 20.0 or more sacks: 2,J. J. Watt, 2012 & 2014^[17]
• NFL most consecutive games recording a sack: 11,Chris Jones, 2018
• NFL most consecutive games recording a sack (team): 75,Pittsburgh Steelers, 2016–2021^[18]
• NFL career sacks taken: 557,Tom Brady, 2000–2022^[19]
• NFL single-season sacks taken: 76,David Carr, 2002^[20]
• NFL game sacks taken: 12,Warren Moon, September 29, 1985 andDonovan McNabb, September 30, 2007^[21]
• NFLSuper Bowl most sacks in a single game: 12,Carolina vs. Denver, 50 (7 by Denver, 5 by Carolina)
• NFL Super Bowl most sacks by a player in a single game: 3^{[note 2]}

• Reggie White –Green Bay vs. New England, XXXI
• Darnell Dockett –Arizona vs. Pittsburgh, XLIII
• Kony Ealy –Carolina vs. Denver, 50
• Grady Jarrett –Atlanta vs. New England, LI

• NFL Super Bowl most sacks, career(sacks compiled since XVII)

• 4.5,Charles Haley – 5 gamesSan FranciscoXXIII,XXIV,DallasXXVII,XXVIII,XXX
• 4.5,Von Miller – 2 gamesDenver50 andLos Angeles RamsLVI^[23]

• List of National Football League annual sacks leaders
• List of National Football League career sacks leaders
• The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game – non-fiction book byMichael Lewis

• Turney, John (June 26, 2000)."Sack story: Setting the record straight on all of those QB takedowns".Pro Football Weekly. Archived fromthe original on November 5, 2008.
• Pro-football-reference.com enumeration of career sack leaders