The Eagles are looking to put a stamp on their remarkable season with a Super Bowl victory. It was particularly remarkable in terms of pass rush, with the Eagles racking up 70 sacks -- the 3rd-highest total in NFL history. Interestingly, finishing that type of season with a Super Bowl title doesn't happen very often.
No question, it was impressive, with the Eagles putting an unprecedented four players over 10 sacks, led by Haason Reddick (pictured) with 16. But keeping that momentum going through the Super Bowl and bringing home a title is uncommon.
In the history of the NFL, there have been 30 times when an NFL defense recorded at least 60 sacks. Only one of those previous 29 teams went on to win a championship. That was the 1985 Bears, widely regarded as maybe the best defense in the history of the league. Unlikely the Eagles are ever discussed with such reverence, but a Super Bowl title would at least go some way to immortalize them.
Only three other of those previous 29 teams, in fact, even advanced to a title game (one Super Bowl loss; the others lost their championship games pre-Super Bowl era). The vast majority of them stumbled before getting there.
TOP PASS RUSHES, NFL HISTORY | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Team | Sk | W | L | T | Result |
1984 | Bears | 72 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost in Championship Game |
1989 | Vikings | 71 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
2022 | Eagles | 70 | 14 | 3 | 0 | ? |
1987 | Bears | 70 | 11 | 4 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1985 | Giants | 68 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1967 | Raiders | 67 | 13 | 1 | 0 | Lost in Super Bowl |
2000 | Saints | 66 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1984 | Washington | 66 | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1981 | Jets | 66 | 10 | 5 | 1 | Lost in Wild-Card Round |
1963 | Patriots | 66 | 7 | 6 | 1 | Lost in Championship Game |
1985 | Raiders | 65 | 12 | 4 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1985 | Bears | 64 | 15 | 1 | 0 | Won Super Bowl |
1984 | Raiders | 64 | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost in Wild-Card Round |
1986 | Raiders | 63 | 8 | 8 | 0 | Missed Playoffs |
1989 | Eagles | 62 | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost in Wild-Card Round |
1986 | Bears | 62 | 14 | 2 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1986 | Chargers | 62 | 4 | 12 | 0 | Missed Playoffs |
1985 | Cowboys | 62 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
2006 | Chargers | 61 | 14 | 2 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1985 | Seahawks | 61 | 8 | 8 | 0 | Missed Playoffs |
1976 | 49ers | 61 | 8 | 6 | 0 | Missed Playoffs |
2013 | Panthers | 60 | 12 | 4 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
2006 | Ravens | 60 | 13 | 3 | 0 | Lost in Divisional Round |
1996 | Panthers | 60 | 12 | 4 | 0 | Lost in Championship Game |
1990 | Kansas City | 60 | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost in Wild-Card Round |
1985 | 49ers | 60 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost in Wild-Card Round |
1984 | Eagles | 60 | 6 | 9 | 1 | Missed Playoffs |
1980 | Chargers | 60 | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost in Championship Game |
1966 | Cowboys | 60 | 10 | 3 | 1 | Lost in Championship Game |
1957 | Bears | 60 | 5 | 7 | 0 | Missed Playoffs |
--Andy Richardson