Myles Garrett Faces Long Odds In Breaking Aaron Donald’s Sack Record

Championship aspirations have soared since the Los Angeles Rams traded for Myles Garrett, who is coming off a historic season. Before the reigning Defensive Player of the Year takes a snap in L.A., how realistic is it for him to set a Rams’ franchise single-season record in sacks in 2026?

For starters, Garrett set an NFL record in 2025 with 23 sacks during his final season with the Browns. He became the 19th player all-time to reach the 20-sack mark and the first since T.J. Watt tied the previous record of 22.5 in 2021. Since sacks became a statistic in 1982, no player has ever officially had back-to-back 20-sack campaigns — though I’m certain Deacon Jones would’ve disagreed with that statement.

To tie or break the Rams’ all-time sack mark, Garrett is working against a trend that has challenged even the greatest pass rushers. Before his record-setting season last year, his previous high in sacks was 16, set in 2021 and ‘22.

That is not to say that it’s an impossible feat, as the All-Pro has amassed 83 of his 125.5 career sacks since 2021, averaging 16.6 in that span.

If Garrett were to at the very least match his average set in the last five seasons in 2026, that would be tied for fourth in Rams history. According to StatMuse, here is a list of the Rams’ single-season sack leaders, to provide context as to what Garrett is working towards this season:

1.) Aaron Donald – 20.5 (2018)

2.) Robert Quinn – 19.0 (2013)

3.) Kevin Carter – 17.0 (1999)

4.) Kevin Greene – 16.5 (1988 and 1989)

5.) Leonard Little – 14.5 (2001)

Garrett would need about four more sacks than his average to tie Donald’s franchise record, which again would be a challenging feat, even for him. However, this is the same guy who previously touted his desire to break the all-time sack record. Who’s going to get in the way of his dreams?

NFL history suggests that the odds are against Garrett to reach consecutive 20-sack seasons, something even the greatest pass rushers have been unable to achieve. Eclipsing Donald’s single-season mark will be a tall task for him, yet he’s arriving in L.A. fresh off the most productive year of his career and is one of the few players ever who could make the near-impossible a realistic goal this season.