Myles Garrett holds the official single-season record for sacks with 23.
This is a list ofNational Football League (NFL) players who have led theregular season insacks each year. Sacks became an official statistic in 1982 and sacks from years prior do not count towards a player'scareer total .[ 1] Myles Garrett of theCleveland Browns holds the official record with 23, set during the 2025 season.[ 2]
TheDeacon Jones Award was established by the NFL in 2013 to recognize the annual leader in sacks, named after the former defensive endDeacon Jones who led the league in sacks five times.[ 3] Since 1982, there have only been two players who have led the league in sacks with two different teams,Jared Allen (2007 with the Chiefs and 2011 with the Vikings) andKevin Greene (1994 with the Steelers and 1996 with the Panthers). The Chiefs and the Vikings have had the most players lead the NFL in sacks with four. Seven players have been the league leader in sacks twice, while T. J. Watt has led the league three times.
NFL annual sacks leaders [ edit ] Jared Allen led the league in sacks in 2007 and 2011.Al Baker is the unofficial NFL record holder with 23 sacks during the1978 NFL season .[ 4] The Deacon Jones Award, given annually to the player who leads the league in sacks, is named afterDeacon Jones . Jones unofficially led the league in sacks five times. Key Symbol Meaning Leader The player who recorded the most sacks Sacks Total number ofsacks GP Number of games played during the season † Pro Football Hall of Fame member^ Active player * Single-season record (#) Denotes the number of times a player appears in this list
Note that the sack totals from 1960 to 1981 are considered unofficial by the NFL .[ 5] [ 6]
AFL annual sacks leaders [ edit ] Key Symbol Meaning Leader The player who recorded the most sacks Sacks Total number ofsacks GP Number of games played during the season * Single-season record (#) Denotes the number of times a player appears in this list
Most seasons leading the league [ edit ] Count Player Seasons Team(s) Ref. 5 Deacon Jones 1964 ,1965 ,1967 ,1968 ,1969 Los Angeles Rams [ 11] 3 T. J. Watt 2020 ,2021 ,2023 Pittsburgh Steelers [ 57] 2 Jared Allen 2007 ,2011 Kansas City Chiefs /Minnesota Vikings [ 47] Al Baker 1978 ,1980 Detroit Lions [ 23] Mark Gastineau 1983 ,1984 New York Jets [ 27] Kevin Greene 1994 ,1998 Pittsburgh Steelers /Carolina Panthers [ 36] Jim Katcavage 1962 ,1963 New York Giants [ 10] Michael Strahan 2001 ,2003 New York Giants [ 42] DeMarcus Ware 2008 ,2010 Dallas Cowboys [ 48] J. J. Watt 2012 ,2015 Houston Texans [ 50] Reggie White 1987 ,1988 Philadelphia Eagles [ 30] Jack Youngblood 1974 ,1979 Los Angeles Rams [ 19]
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Sack totals from 1960 to 1981 are considered unofficial by the NFL. The sack leader has been officially honored with the Deacon Jones Award since 2013.
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