Edge rusher is considered the most important position on an NFL defense. However, despite the lofty contracts and high draft picks, it turns out that dominant edge rushers do not often translate to wins on the field.
Last season’s Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks team did not have a single player on the roster finish the schedule with more than seven sacks.
In 2024, the Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl with a defense that was in the discussion for one of the best of the century. It was the same story as their leading sack getter, Josh Sweat, tallied just eight in the regular season.
Only two out of the last 10 Super Bowl champs had a player with more than 10 regular-season sacks (both were Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs).
So what are these teams paying for?
The highest-paid edge rusher in the league, Micah Parsons, has just one career playoff win. Future Hall of Famer Myles Garrett broke the all-time sack record, and his team could only conjure up five wins.
Perennial league-leader T.J. Watt is 0-5 in his playoff career.
Maxx Crosby, who was just traded for two first-round draft picks and carries a more than $35 million cap hit, lost in his one and only playoff appearance.
It’s clear that dumping more than 10% of your entire team’s salary cap into one edge rusher has not translated in the win column, so why would the [New England Patriots](https://nesn.com/new-england-patriots) even consider it?
The Patriots need some serious pass-rush help, but as Seattle proved, drafting smart and paying role players can result in a more cohesive defense. There is no reason to buy an elite edge rusher, and I expect New England to follow the Seahawks' formula.