Ranking the NFL's top edge rushers: Execs, coaches...
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- Myles Garrett received a first-place vote on every single ballot — a rare clean sweep — after posting an NFL-record 23 sacks and 33 tackles for loss in 2025; he now plays for the Los Angeles Rams.
- Micah Parsons moved up to No. 2 despite suffering an ACL tear in December, leading all players with 315 pressures since 2021 and a 24.6% pass rush win rate while facing double-teams on 37.8% of snaps.
- Will Anderson Jr. climbed five spots to No. 3 and already earned a three-year, $150 million extension from Houston; he tied Maxx Crosby in voting but won the tiebreaker with more top-five votes.
- T.J. Watt fell from No. 2 to No. 7 after missing three late-season games with a partially collapsed lung caused by a dry needling incident at the Steelers' facility, with one AFC exec bluntly saying he is "definitely in decline."
- Maxx Crosby placed No. 4 with 69.5 career sacks, but a potential trade to Baltimore fell through in March over concerns about his surgically repaired knee.
- Aidan Hutchinson reached No. 5 coming off a serious leg injury that cost him most of 2024, becoming the first player since 1982 with 40-plus sacks and five-plus interceptions through his first four NFL seasons.
Why it matters: This consensus ranking crystallizes a pass-rushing hierarchy where Garrett has separated from the pack and Watt's drop to No. 7 opens a potential Steelers trade path. Parsons finishing top-2 despite an ACL tear shows voters weigh metrics over durability, and the rankings will shape 2026 contract and trade discussions league-wide.
