This article explores the evolution of the edge rusher position in the NFL and ranks the top 10 pass rushers of all time based on their impact and athleticism.
If quarterbacks are the most important players in the game, it could be argued that those most responsible for stopping them are the second most important. The edge rusher position has evolved similarly to quarterbacks over the years. When quarterbacks operated more from the pocket, the best edge rusher s might not have been seen as the most athletic forces in the league.
But as quarterbacks have turned into dual threats, edge rushers have followed suit, becoming more athletic to help chase down their opponents. So, let's take a look at which 10 pass rushers have been the best at doing that in NFL history. No one took down more opposing quarterbacks than Smith. The Buffalo Bills great recorded 200 career sacks, the most in NFL history. He was a major reason for Buffalo's success from the late 1980s through the mid-1990s, recording double-digit sack seasons 12 times in a 13-year span between 1986-1998. The one season he didn't record double-digit sacks during that stretch, he played in only five games due to knee injuries. An 11-time All-Pro and Pro Bowler, Smith also won Defensive Player of the Year twice. He had 19 sacks in 1990 when he first won the award, and he recorded 13.5 sacks to go with a league-high five forced fumbles in 1996. Smith finished his career in Washington, where he had 29 sacks in his final four seasons before retiring at age 40 following the 2003 season. As Smith was instilling fear in AFC quarterbacks in the 1980s and ‘90s, White was doing the same to NFC quarterbacks. The Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers icon was neck-and-neck with Smith as the league's best pass rusher over that time, earning All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in all but one season before his first retirement in 1999. He won Defensive Player of the Year for the first time in his career in just his third season, recording 21 sacks in 12 games in 1987. He joined the Packers in 1993, being credited as the player who helped kick-start free agency in the NF
NFL Edge Rusher Pass Rusher Quarterback History Top 10
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