Quarterback sack
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gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...
, a sack occurs when the
quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
(or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the
line of scrimmage In gridiron football, a line of scrimmage is an invisible transverse line (across the width of the field) beyond which a team cannot cross until the next play has begun. Its location is based on the spot where the ball is placed after the end ...
before throwing a
forward pass In several forms of football, a forward pass is the throwing of the ball in the direction in which the offensive team is trying to move, towards the defensive team's goal line. The legal and widespread use of the forward pass distinguishes grid ...
, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "
pocket A pocket is a bag- or envelope-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing to hold small items. Pockets are also attached to luggage, backpacks, and similar items. In older usage, a pocket was a separate small bag o ...
" and without clear intent, or when a passer runs out of bounds behind the line of scrimmage due to defensive pressure. This often occurs if the opposing team's defensive line,
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
s or defensive backs are able to apply pass pressure (also called a
pass rush On defense in gridiron football, a pass rush is charging across the line of scrimmage towards the quarterback in an effort to stop or " sack" them. The purpose is tackling, hurrying or flushing the quarterback out of his protective pocket or th ...
) to quickly get past blocking players of the offensive team (the quarterback's protection), or if the quarterback is unable to find an available eligible receiver (including
wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...
s,
running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
s and
tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...
s) to catch the ball, allowing the defense a longer opportunity to tackle the quarterback. A sack is advantageous for the defending team as the offense loses a down, and the line of scrimmage retreats several yards. Even better for the defense is a sack causing the quarterback to
fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...
the ball at or behind the line of scrimmage; this is also known as a strip sack and can result in a turnover if the defense manages to obtain the ball. A quarterback who is pressured but avoids a sack can still be adversely affected by being forced to hurry. The quarterback must pass the statistical line of scrimmage to avoid the sack. If a passer is sacked in his own end zone, the result is a
safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...
and the defending team is awarded two points. If the football is fumbled and recovered either inside the end zone by the defense, or outside the end zone and is returned to the end zone this results in a
touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...
for the defense.


Statistical record rules

To be considered a sack, the quarterback must intend to throw a forward pass. If the play is designed for the quarterback to rush (run) the ball, any loss is subtracted from the quarterback's rushing total (and the play is ruled a
tackle for loss The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...
as opposed to a sack). If the quarterback's intent is not obvious, statisticians use certain criteria, such as the offensive line blocking scheme, to decide. Unique situations where a loss reduces a quarterback's rushing total (not a sack) are " kneel downs" (used to run time off the game clock). A player will receive credit for half of a sack when multiple players contribute to the sacking of a quarterback, even if more than two players contributed. In the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL), it is possible to record a sack for zero yards. The NFL subtracts yards lost due to sacks from teams' passing totals (though the quarterback's individual passing total stats remain unchanged), while the
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
subtracts sack yardage from individual rushing totals.


History

The term ''sack'' was first popularized in the 1960s by
Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
defensive end Deacon Jones, who felt that a quarterback being sacked devastated the offense in the same way that a city was devastated when it was sacked. In 1999, Jones provided a ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' reporter with some other detailed imagery about his forte: "You take all the offensive linemen and put them in a burlap bag, and then you take a baseball bat and beat on the bag. You're sacking them, you're bagging them. And that’s what you're doing with a quarterback." According to former NFL coach Marv Levy,
Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
coach George Allen may have coined the term when referring to
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
quarterback Craig Morton when he purportedly stated before a game, "Before we play those Dallas Cowboys, we’re going to take that Morton salt and pour him into a sack." Prior to ''sack'', the term ''dump'' was often used, as the NFL's statistical office recorded all sacks under "dumping the passer". The NFL only began to keep track of times passers lost yardage in 1961 and no credit was given to the defensive player responsible until 1982.NFL Records
/ref> Researcher John Turney of the
Pro Football Researchers Association The Professional Football Researchers Association (PFRA) is an organization of researchers whose mission is to preserve and, in some cases, reconstruct professional American football history. It was founded on June 22, 1979 in Canton, Ohio by w ...
estimated that Jones recorded 173½ sacks in his career. Controversial NFL rule changes made for the 2018 season prohibit tacklers from landing on the quarterback after making a sack, with the punishment being a roughing the passer penalty.


Pass pressure

Of all forms of defensive pressure against the opposition's passer, sacks provide the most immediate impact by ending the offensive play. However, quarterbacks sometimes avoid a sack by throwing an incomplete pass or risking an
interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...
. According to
Football Outsiders Football Outsiders (FO) was a website started in July 2003 which focused on advanced statistical analysis of the National Football League (NFL). The site was run by a staff of regular writers, who produced a series of weekly columns using both t ...
, a quarterback hurry is the most common form of pass pressure. In the
2009 NFL season The 2009 NFL season was the 90th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL). The 50th anniversary of the original eight charter members of the American Football League was celebrated during this season. The preseason started ...
, there were 1,106 sacks and 3,268 hurries, and a hurried quarterback generally averaged fewer yards per pass play compared to the average pass play.


NFL records

These records are from 1982 onwards, the year the NFL started officially recording sacks. * NFL single-season sacks: 22.5, T. J. Watt, 2021 and
Michael Strahan Michael Anthony Strahan ( ; born November 21, 1971) is an American television host, journalist, and former professional American football, football player. He played his entire 15-year professional career as a defensive end for the New York Gian ...
, 2001 * NFL career sacks: 200, Bruce Smith, 1985–2003 * NFL single-game sacks: 7, Derrick Thomas, November 11, 1990 vs. Seattle Seahawks * NFL sacks, rookie season: 14.5, Jevon Kearse, 1999 * NFL seasons leading league in sacks: 3, T. J. Watt, 2020, 2021, 2023 * NFL seasons with 20.0 or more sacks: 2, J. J. Watt, 2012 & 2014 * NFL most consecutive games recording a sack: 11, Chris Jones, 2018 * NFL most consecutive games recording a sack (team): 75,
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...
, 2016–2021 * NFL career sacks taken: 557,
Tom Brady Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons. He spent his first 20 seasons with the New Engla ...
, 2000–2022 * NFL single-season sacks taken: 76, David Carr, 2002 * NFL game sacks taken: 12,
Warren Moon Harold Warren Moon (born November 18, 1956) is an American former professional Gridiron football, football player who was a quarterback for 23 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL). He spent most of h ...
, September 29, 1985 and
Donovan McNabb Donovan Jamal McNabb (born November 25, 1976) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college ...
, September 30, 2007 * NFL
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
most sacks in a single game: 12, Carolina vs. Denver, 50 (7 by Denver, 5 by Carolina) * NFL Super Bowl most sacks by a player in a single game: 3 :* Reggie WhiteGreen Bay vs. New England, XXXI :* Darnell DockettArizona vs. Pittsburgh, XLIII :* Kony EalyCarolina vs. Denver, 50 :* Grady JarrettAtlanta vs. New England, LI * NFL Super Bowl most sacks, career ''(sacks compiled since XVII)'' :* 4.5, Charles Haley – 5 games
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
XXIII, XXIV,
Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
XXVII, XXVIII, XXX :* 4.5, Von Miller – 2 games
Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
50 and
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...
LVI


See also

* List of National Football League annual sacks leaders * List of National Football League career sacks leaders * '' The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game'' – non-fiction book by Michael Lewis


Notes


References


External links

*
Pro-football-reference.com enumeration of career sack leaders
{{American football concepts American football terminology Canadian football terminology sv:Amerikansk fotboll#Sammanfattning av termer i amerikansk fotboll