NFL single-season sack record: Who has the most sacks in one season in the history of the league?

Pressuring the quarterback has become one of the defining measures of defensive dominance in the modern NFL. Among all defensive achievements, few are as closely watched or as difficult to attain as the single-season sack record.

Season after season, pass rushers chase after one of the league’s most cherished individual records: the most sacks in a single NFL season.

Since the league began officially recording sacks in 1982, the benchmark for pressure has been firmly established at 22.5 sacks. Michael Strahan of the New York Giants set this mark in 2001 (stats via Opta Analyst), a performance that has stood the test of time.

“Shedeur Sanders takes bad sacks and can’t handle pressure”

Reality is he is one of the best in the NFL at escaping sacks and is still producing at a high level despite a bad #Browns OL & WR corps pic.twitter.com/DCRUUH1WZV

— Mac🦬 (@tha_buffalo) December 26, 2025

Two decades later, T.J. Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers matched Strahan’s total in 2021, making them co-record holders in official NFL history. Watt’s performance was particularly remarkable because he achieved it in just 15 games, one fewer than Strahan had in 2001.

Behind the co-leaders sit a small group of elite pass rushers who have nearly reached that pinnacle. Mark Gastineau, Jared Allen, and Justin Houston each logged 22 sacks in their best seasons, coming within touching distance of the all-time number.

In more recent seasons, defenders like Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns have flirted with history themselves. Garrett’s 2025 campaign saw him post a sack total just shy of the record among active players, reminding fans that great single-season performances continue to emerge.

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It’s worth noting that if we include unofficial statistics compiled by historians from games before 1982, the numbers shift slightly. Al “Bubba” Baker of the Detroit Lions, for example, is credited with 23 sacks in 1978, a total that would eclipse the official mark but isn’t recognised by the NFL due to the absence of official tracking at the time.

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