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Ranking the top 5 NFL rookie pass rushers in league history

By Ronnie Eastham

CLEVELAND, OH - OCTOBER 16: Defensive lineman Reggie White #92 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on from the sideline during a game against the Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on October 16, 1988 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Browns defeated the Eagles 19-3. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - OCTOBER 16: Defensive lineman Reggie White #92 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on from the sideline during a game against the Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on October 16, 1988 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Browns defeated the Eagles 19-3. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images) /
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We dive into the annals of NFL history to find the top five performances by rookie pass rushers and their career accomplishments to date.

We hear all the time that defensive linemen tend to take some time to develop, and most will say year three is the year of the player’s “big leap”.  I say that because we had four defensive edge pass rushers taken in the first round, and three went between picks one and five.

Travon Walker, Aidan Hutchinson, and Kayvon Thibodeaux are three pass rushers who come into the 2022 NFL season with high expectations and hopes from their respective fan bases.

NFL 2022
Jun 7, 2022; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (5) participates in a drill during minicamp at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-USA TODAY Sports /

Which rookies had the best pass rush seasons in NFL history?

So, I figured what better time to put together a list of the top five rookie performances from the league’s pass rushers in NFL history.

When I dove into this, I was a little surprised to see several rookies have produced double-digit sack seasons in their rookie years.  In fact, since 1982, per statmuse.com, 25 players recorded 10.5 sacks or more in their rookie season.

Now keep in mind as we go through this ranking, pass rushers don’t only come from the defensive line, linebackers, such as Von Miller (hint hint) are known throughout the league as one of the best pass-rushing linebackers in the game today.

So for a list that ranks the top 5, it would be simple to just pick the top 5 sack producers, right?  That would be too easy, so I took it a step further.

Yes, an edge defender’s primary goal is to take down the quarterback but what about run defense or pressuring the quarterback, that could lead to incompletions or better yet, interceptions.  What about tackles for loss?

The tricky thing here is stats like quarterback hits weren’t tracked as an official stat until 2006, or what about quarterback pressure rate?  This is a relatively new stat as well, that we didn’t hear 20 years ago.

Stats for pass rushers have certainly changed over the years.  I suppose I could have watched every game of every one of these players that’s available online and tracked pressures versus snaps and, oh never mind.

Who has time for all that?

So with that, here are my top five all-time rookie seasons by an edge defender.

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