The NFL has a gift for having excellent edge rushers, making it difficult to separate the elite from the good. Of course, Myles Garrett and TJ Watt will always be among the best in the league – but they have a few players joining them in this category.
Nick Bosa and Micah Parsons have risen to prominence in recent years, ranked among the league’s elite pass rushers. Who is the best edge rusher in the game? This formula can be a bit tricky.
Let’s make it as easy as possible. Edge defenders include defensive ends and pass-rushing linebackers, and the pressing and sacks play an important part in the equation. This is a ranking of the Edge Rushers starting the 2023 season, so the previous season plays an important role in the formula. Past achievements also play a role in the rankings, but these are largely based on the 2022 season.
To recap last year’s rankings, let’s take a look back at the top 10:
Note: Micah Parsons and others were listed as linebackers last season, but the formula is changing to include all pass rushers for 2023.
There are significant changes in the top 10 this year. So let’s unveil this year’s Edge Rusher Rankings:
10. Trey Hendrickson (Cincinnati Bengals)
Trey Hendrickson
CIN • DE • #91
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Even in a “bad” year by the standards of Henderson, he’s still one of the best passers in football. Pressures (62) and sacks (8.0) were below his best season in 2021 (75 pressures, 14 sacks), but Henderson still had a pressure rating of at least 17% (17.0%) for the second straight year .
Henderson still had 35 hurries and 24 quarterback hits last season, showing he’s still on the way to quarterback. His 35.5 sacks over the past three seasons is fourth in the NFL, while his 186 pressures are fifth.
Henderson is the Bengals’ top pass rusher and still a force to be reckoned with.
9. Za’Darius Smith (Cleveland Browns)
Za’Darius Smith
CLE•EN•#99
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Smith’s freshman year in Minnesota couldn’t have been better, especially since he sustained a back injury that limited him to just two games the previous season. Smith recorded his third double-digit sack season in four years, finishing the year with 10 sacks and earning a Pro Bowl appearance.
Smith had 78 pressings and 24 quarterback hits in 2022, for a 16.7% pressure rate. In pressure, he finished fourth in the league. Of pass rushers with 500+ defensive snaps, Smith trailed only Nick Bosa, Micah Parsons, and Trey Hendrickson in pressure rate.
Last season, it was confirmed that Smith is still one of the best pass rushers in the game. He will be an excellent compliment to Myles Garrett in Cleveland.
Brian Burns
AUTO • EN • #53
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For Burns, who ranks among the best young pass rushers in the game, his second straight Pro Bowl appearance was well-deserved. Burns recorded his first double-digit sack season (12.5), ranking eighth in the NFL. His 68 presses ranked 10th in the league.
Burns finished last season with 22 quarterback hits and a 13.7% print ratio. He also ranked seventh in tackles for loss (17) in the NFL. As he begins his first season with Ejiro Evero as defensive coordinator, those numbers are likely to improve in 2023.
Matt Judon
NE • OLB • #9
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Judon was one of the top pass rushers in the league last season, ranking fourth in the NFL with 15.5 sacks and 28 quarterback hits. His 69 pressures also ranked ninth in the NFL as he finished with a 15.2% pressure ratio.
With his fourth straight Pro Bowl selection, Judon continues to improve season after season. With 132 pressings and 28 sacks in New England, he had double-digit sack seasons for the second straight season, ranking third in the NFL for sacks and seventh for pressures during that span.
One of the underrated pass rushers in the game, Judon continues to be a sack artist for the Patriots.
6. Maxx Crosby (Las Vegas Raiders)
Max Crosby
LV • DE • #98
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Speaking of underrated pass rushers, Crosby never seems to live up to being one of the best when it comes to getting to the quarterback. Crosby had another great season as a pass rusher, posting a career-high 12.5 sacks left and 81 pressings (third in the NFL). The pressure ratio fell to 13.2% from 18.1% in 2021, yet Crosby was second in the league in quarterback hits (36) and first in tackles for losses (22).
Crosby has had the most pressure in the NFL (182) and the most rush (116) over the past two seasons. He is also second in quarterback hits (66) and second in tackles for loss (35).
Crosby is a Pro Bowler for the second straight year and one of the NFL’s top pass rushers. He’ll be in the elite category as the sack totals tend to trend in that direction over the course of his career.
Haason Reddick
PHI • OLB • #7
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Reddick had a great season in his freshman year with the Eagles, finishing second in the NFL with 16.5 sacks (with Myles Garrett). His 26 quarterback hits were eighth in the NFL, and he ranked tenth in presses with 68 while also boasting a career high press rate of 15.9%.
Reddick, a second-team All-Pro in 2022, was the top pass rusher on an Eagles defense that finished the year with 70 sacks — the first team in NFL history to have four players sacked in a season scored double-digit sacks.
Reddick and Garrett are the only players in the league to have double-digit sacks each in the past three years — and he is the only player to have double-digit sacks seasons in three years with three different teams.
Whatever the defensive coordinator, Reddick shines.
Micah Parsons
DAL • LB • #11
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Parsons has only been in the NFL for two seasons and is already one of the game’s elite pass rushers. After an incredible rookie season (13 sacks, 67 pressures), Parsons surpassed those numbers in his sophomore year with 13.5 sacks and 90 pressures.
In addition to being a first-team All-Pro for the second straight year, Parsons also took second place in the Defensive Player of the Year poll for the second straight year. Parsons had a 19.3% print rate, leading the league.
Parsons had six multiple sack games in 2022, the second most in the league. His 26.5 sacks after his first two seasons ranks sixth in NFL history, and he is the only player in league history, along with Reggie White and Aldon Smith, to have more than 13 sacks in each of his first two seasons Sacks has booked.
Year three for Parsons could be even bigger as he begins his fledgling career at an historic pace.
T2. TJ Watts (Pittsburgh Steelers)
TJ Watts
PIT•OLB•#90
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A pectoral tear limited Watt in 2022 as he had just 5.5 sacks and 31 pressing in 10 games — the lowest totals of his six-year career. Although the Steelers defense was also at career-lows for quarterback hits (12) and pressure rate (11.1%), it was significantly better when Watt was playing.
With Watt on the field, the Steelers’ defense was conceding 16.9 points per game and 3.2 sacks per game (8-1 record). With no watts, it allowed 25.3 points and had just 1.1 sacks (a 1-6 record). Whether or not Watt is producing, Pittsburgh is better at targeting quarterbacks.
Watt is still one of only three players to lead the NFL in sacks in consecutive seasons (Reggie White and Mark Gastineau being the others). He and White are the only players to have more than 13 sacks in four straight seasons. Watt is also the only player in NFL history with more than 75 sacks and more than six interceptions in his first six NFL seasons — and the first player to do that feat in his first 100 games.
Despite the injury-plagued 2022 season, Watt still has the most sacks (77.5), quarterback hits (162) and forced fumbles (23) since joining the league in 2017. He is one of the elite pass rushers in the league Football and still at it, a historic start to an already stellar career.
T2. Myles Garrett (Cleveland Browns)
Myles Garrett
CLE • DE • #95
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There’s not much to say about Garrett at this stage in his career. He’s one of the best pass rushers of his time and at this rate could go down in history as one of the best in NFL history.
Garrett had 16 sacks last season, trailing only Nick Bosa for most sacks in the NFL. His 73 presses ranked sixth in the league and his 26 quarterback hits tied for eighth, earning him second-team All-Pro honors with a 16.1% press ratio. Garrett is the definition of consistency for a pass rusher, having had the second most sacks (32) and tackles for losses (35) and fourth most pressure (152) over the past two seasons.
Garrett is the only player to have 10-plus sacks in each of the last five seasons and is one of seven players in NFL history to have 10-plus sacks in five of his first six seasons. His 74.5 sacks are the fourth most in a player’s first 84 games in NFL history, behind only Reggie White (91.5), JJ Watt (76) and TJ Watt (76).
Garrett and Watt average .89 sacks per game, the highest in NFL history. Not only is Garrett among the elite, he’s also at an historic pace at this point in his career.
1. Nick Bosa (San Francisco 49ers)
Nick Bosa
SF • DE • #97
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No pass rusher in the NFL had the season that Bosa had in 2022, earning him the AP Defensive Player of the Year award. Bosa led the NFL in sacks (18.5) and quarterback hits (48) and tied the league in pressings (90) with an 18.8% pressure rate. Bosa has had the most sacks (34), tackles for loss (40), and quarterback hits (80) over the past two seasons. If there’s any big pass-rushing statistic, Bosa is either first or second (only behind Maxx Crosby for the most pressure in the last two seasons).
Bosa is only the fifth player since 1982 (when sacks became an official stat), as well as surpassing 15 sacks in two of his first four seasons. He also became the fourth player since 1982 to have a sack in 13 regular-season games, trailing only DeMarcus Ware (14 games in 2008) for all-time sacks.
Bosa was the top player on a 49ers defense that led the NFL in points allowed per game (16.3) and yards allowed per game (300.6). While Bosa creates highlights on the field, he manages to hit the quarterback every week with remarkable consistency.
In 2023, Bosa is the NFL’s top pass rusher. The numbers prove it.
Honorable Mention (in no particular order): Joey Bosa (Los Angeles Chargers), Danielle Hunter (Minnesota Vikings), Josh Sweat (Philadelphia Eagles), Brandon Graham (Philadelphia Eagles), Josh Uche (New England Patriots), Alex Highsmith (Pittsburgh Steelers), Montez Sweat (Washington Commanders) , Von Miller (Buffalo Bills), Aidan Hutchinson (Detroit Lions), Jaelan Phillips (Miami Dolphins).