Sacks didn’t become an official NFL statistic until 1982, but now thanks to Pro Football Reference there’s a record of the statistic going back to 1960. While sacks before ‘82 are unofficial, it’s still neat to see all the new numbers they’ve compiled, if for no other reason, than to get a better appreciation for defenders that played before the sack was the premier stat for defensive linemen.
This doesn’t change the all-time sack leader (Bruce Smith with 200), but it does finally show the terror caused by the inventor of the head slap, Deacon Jones, as his 173.