NFL longevity is a double-edged sword with regards to the league’s report books.
For instance, take each Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson. The new Pittsburgh Steelers passer is coming into his thirteenth 12 months within the league and is already one of many Top-15 quarterbacks in league historical past with regards to touchdown passes. Wilson enters 2024 sitting thirteenth on that record with 334 landing tosses, simply eight behind Minnesota Vikings legend Fran Tarkenton. Wilson can be third amongst energetic quarterbacks, behind Matthew Stafford (whose 357 profession TD passes have him eleventh on the identical record) and Rodgers, whose 475 TD passes have him simply 33 behind Brett Favre in fourth place.
That is one fringe of the NFL longevity sword.
The different?
Both Wilson and Rodgers are vulnerable to setting one other NFL report for quarterbacks, and a doubtful one at that. When Tarkenton stepped away from the sport, he left the NFL behind having been sacked 570 times.
That mark nonetheless stands as probably the most a QB has ever been sacked over his profession. Tom Brady’s longevity has him second on that record with 565 profession sacks taken, and Ben Roethlisberger sits third, with 554.
In fourth? Rodgers, who has been sacked 531 instances over his 19-year profession. Wilson is true behind Rodgers in fifth, with 527 sacks.
Given their historical past, each passers might attain Tarkenton’s doubtful mark this season.
Rodgers is 39 sacks behind “The Scrambler,” and whereas he has been sacked greater than 39 instances all through his profession — his career-high came in 2012 when he was sacked 51 instances taking part in for the Green Bay Packers — with the investments the New York Jets have made alongside the offensive line there’s hope that the Jets will maintain him protected all season lengthy. But there’s a state of affairs the place he reaches that mark.
As for Wilson, he’s 43 sacks behind Tarkenton. But over his NFL profession, Wilson’s penchant for making an attempt to flee the pocket has led to some huge sack numbers. The lowest variety of instances he has been sacked in a single season is 33, set in each 2012 and 2021 when he was taking part in with the Seattle Seahawks.
In each different season of his profession, Wilson has been sacked a minimum of 41 instances, with eight seasons of 43 sacks or extra.
So, that could be enjoyable to watch this 12 months.
