The other day, this was before Week 17 in the NFL, I was looking at an image on social media which showed the NFL’s sack leaders heading into Week 17 of the season. Of course, I was curious where Pittsburgh Steelers pass rusher T.J. Watt ranked on this list. What shocked me the most was the total number of sacks for the player(s) leading this particular list.

Before going any further, here are the Top 5 sack leaders heading into Week 18, the regular season finale, this weekend:

2024 Sack Leaders

Trey Hendrickson – 14.0

Myles Garrett – 14.0

Danielle Hunter – 12.5

Kyle Van Noy – 11.5

T.J. Watt – 11.5

What astonished me more than anything else was just how few sacks Trey Hendrickson and Myles Garrett have leading into the final week of the regular season. But maybe my brain was confusing me and these numbers were pretty average compared to previous years. To check, I went back and looked as the sack totals going back to 2021.

Here they are:

2023 

T.J. Watt – 19.0

Trey Hendrickson – 17.5

Josh Hines-Allen – 17.5

Khalil Mack – 17.0

Danielle Hunter – 16.5

2022

Nick Bosa – 18.5

Haason Reddick – 16.0

Myles Garrett – 16.0

Chris Jones – 15.5

Mathew Judon – 15.5

2021

T.J. Watt – 22.5

Robert Quinn – 18.5

Myles Garrett – 16.0

Nick Bosa – 15.5

Trey Hendrickson – 14.0

What I found was how these numbers solidified my thoughts on this season being a low bar for the NFL’s league leader in sacking the opposition.

Okay, but that isn’t the true question here. The question is why these numbers are down so much? The answer for this is absolutely dependent on who you talk to and their personal opinions on the matter.

Some will talk about officiating being lenient on offensive tackles getting a head-start to help protect the quarterback. Others will point to injuries to key pass rushers. Lastly, there are some who think offensive schemes are being designed to stop pass rushers more than ever, and that can come in a variety of ways.

If there was a ‘D’, or ‘All the above’, option between all those different theories, that’s what I would choose.

Anyone who watches the NFL on a weekly basis has seen the officiating become extremely lenient on tackles getting that split second jump on the snap. Some tackles are more egregious than others, but it is obvious on plenty of occasions.

Injuries to key pass rushers certainly has hampered these numbers, and even non season-ending injuries can hamper these totals. When you look at the ankle injury to T.J. Watt in the waning minutes of the game vs. the Philadelphia Eagles two weeks ago, he was a shell of himself despite not missing any in-game repetitions. Injuries to Micah Parsons also hampered his sack totals, and these two players are just two examples of how injuries can impact these numbers.

Lastly, offensive coordinators are really starting to throw the proverbial kitchen sink at these pass rushers to help negate these players from impacting the game. Quarterbacks are getting the ball out faster and faster every year. On top of that, they are committing almost 2-3 players to help the offensive tackle on plays. To go back to Watt as an example, there are snaps where he is chipped off the line of scrimmage by a tight end, and then the tackle gets help from the running back as Watt tries to somehow get to the quarterback. This methodology has worked, and it is reliant on all other offensive linemen to win their respective one-on-ones. According to PFF, no pass rusher gets chipped more than T.J. Watt with a 32.74% chip percentage.

So, what does this all mean? Why are the sack totals so low compared to previous years? It comes down to defenses who are winning without the need of one player being the true “Game Wrecker”. When you look at the Top 2 defense in terms of sack production, you have the Denver Broncos with 58 and the Baltimore Ravens with 52.

Care to name any elite pass rushers on either team?

Outside of Kyle Van Noy, neither team has a pass rusher who is in the Top 5 of the sack category. They are doing it as a team, not as individuals who are dominating every step of the way. Take a look at the Top 5 individual sack leaders, and how many sacks their respective teams have as well:

2024 Sack Leaders

Trey Hendrickson – 14.0 / Bengals – 32

Myles Garrett – 14.0 / Browns – 41

Danielle Hunter – 12.5 / Texans – 47

Kyle Van Noy – 11.5 / Ravens – 52

T.J. Watt – 11.5  / Steelers – 36

I’m not suggesting these players are not elite or the best of the best, but what we might be seeing are less individual sacks, and a bigger focus on team statistics becoming more important. For the Steelers, you’d think with Watt being chipped as much as he is, Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig would help bolster those sack numbers. Highsmith has 6 sacks in 10 games, and Herbig has 4.5 sacks in 12 games. Both players have dealt with injuries this season.

To me, there is no clear-cut answer to why the sack numbers are down around the league. All of the aforementioned factors play a roll, and it will be interesting to see if these numbers see a resurgence in 2025 or if they are finding a new level of normal.

Be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 18 of the regular season.