Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett set the NFL single-season sack record on Sunday, recording his 23rd sack of the season against Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow with 5:06 remaining in the fourth quarter.
The historic takedown broke the previous record of 22.5 sacks, which had been shared by Hall of Famer Michael Strahan and Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt. Strahan established the mark in 16 games during the 2001 season with the New York Giants. Watt matched the total in 2021, accomplishing the feat in 15 games despite missing two contests due to injury. Garrett achieved his record-breaking performance in the NFL's current 17-game regular season format. The 30-year-old Garrett, selected first overall by Cleveland in the 2017 NFL Draft, became the 11th player in league history to record more than 20 sacks in a single season since the statistic became official in 1982.
He entered Week 18 with 22 sacks after being held without a takedown in the previous week's victory over Pittsburgh. Garrett's record-setting campaign featured multiple dominant performances. He recorded five sacks against the New England Patriots on October 26, four against the Baltimore Ravens on November 16, and three against the Las Vegas Raiders. The seven-time Pro Bowl selection demonstrated remarkable consistency despite opponents frequently deploying double teams and quick-release passing schemes designed to neutralize his impact.
The Browns star finished the regular season having registered at least one sack in eight of nine career matchups against Burrow, accumulating 15 total sacks against Cincinnati since entering the league. His achievement stands as the premier individual accomplishment for Cleveland during a challenging 3-13 campaign. An unofficial pre-1982 record of 23 sacks was set by Al "Bubba" Baker with the Detroit Lions in 1978, though the NFL did not begin officially tracking sacks as a statistic until the 1982 season.
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