Vikings defensive end Jared Allen said in June that he thought a player could rack up 25 sacks in a single season and pointed to Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware as someone capable of the task.
Ware is operating on a similar wavelength. When Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News asked about Allen’s comments, Ware signed up as both a member of the mutual admiration society as well as the group that believes 25 sacks in a year can happen.
“With that coming from Jared Allen, who had 22 last year, the sky’s the limit,” Ware said. “I’ll also flip it back on him, and say, he can do the same thing, and also, Jason Babin. They’re playing really well. But it’s all about how the season goes. If it’s more of a passing season, we’re probably going to have more sacks.”
Ware turns 30 this year, the same age Michael Strahan was when he had 22.5 sacks to set the single-season record. The Cowboys linebacker had 19.5 sacks last season to finish second to Allen and Ware also had 20 sacks in 2008, giving him two of the top-10 single-season sack totals since sacks became an official statistic in 1982.
As long as the game continues to become more and more aerially oriented, we’re in agreement with Allen and Ware. As Ware said, more passes mean more opportunities for sacks and it isn’t hard to fathom one season coming together perfectly for one of the league’s best pass rushers.