This is a list of

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) players who have led the

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of S ...

in sacks each year. Sacks became an official statistic in 1982 and sacks from years prior do not count towards a player's career total.

Michael Strahan Michael Anthony Strahan ( ; born November 21, 1971) is an American television host, journalist, and former professional American football, football player. He played his entire 15-year professional career as a defensive end for the New York Gian ...

of the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

and

T. J. Watt Trent Jordan Watt (born October 11, 1994) is an American professional American football, football linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers football, Wiscon ...

of the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

hold the official record with 22.5, which Strahan set during the 2001 season, and Watt matched during the 2021 season. The Deacon Jones Award was established by the NFL in 2013 to recognize the annual leader in sacks, named after the former defensive end

Deacon Jones David D. "Deacon" Jones (December 9, 1938 – June 3, 2013) was an American professional football defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. He played for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers, and Washin ...

who led the league in sacks five times. Since 1982, there have only been two players who have led the league in sacks with two different teams,

Jared Allen Jared Scot Allen (born April 3, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. A five-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro selection, he recorded 136 car ...

(2007 with the Chiefs and 2011 with the Vikings) and

Kevin Greene Kevin Darwin Greene (July 31, 1962December 21, 2020) was an American professional American football, football player who was a linebacker and defensive end for the Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers, and San Francisco 49e ...

(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

''Note that the sack totals from 1960 to 1981 are considered unofficial by the NFL''.

AFL annual sacks leaders

Most seasons leading the league

References

{{NFL Honors Sacks

NFL annual sacks leaders

AFL annual sacks leaders

Most seasons leading the league

See also

References