Is There an Edge Rusher Shortage Across the NFL?

I recently wondered if the Los Angeles Chargers should be using their franchise tag on edge rusher Odafe Oweh and basically argued with myself about it. There is reason to believe that Oweh is due a regression and that paying him an astronomical figure to be a not-great pass rusher would screw up the roster in at least one other spot by eating up all of the resources.

This morning, I tried to zoom out and consider it with the perspective of having more context. What is Oweh's value around the league? Would other teams consider paying Oweh like a superstar?

And that brought me to these stats. Let's go through them one by one...

Defensive sacks across the NFL have declined each year since 2023

Across the entire NFL, there were 1,410 total defensive sacks in 2023, 1,314 sacks in 2024, and 1,287 sacks in 2025. That's not a blip, that's a trend, and it says that offenses are getting better at reducing how often their QB is getting hit.

That means that someone like Oweh, who had 7.5 sacks in 12 games with the Chargers (after being traded by the Baltimore Ravens) and 3 sacks in the team's playoff loss to the New England Patriots, is even more valuable today than he would've been two years ago.

The free agent edge rushers are on the older side

Let's take a look at some of the top edge rushers on the free agent market this year, along with their age:

At just 27 years old, any time signing Odafe Oweh is potentially signing up for the bulk of his prime. That increases his value in contrast to these guys and I would not be surprised if he ended up the getting the most money of the group, if he were to hit free agency.

Everyone needs edge rushers

Among the 32 NFL teams, about half of them are in search of a new starting edge rusher this offseason. Some of them will buy one on the free agent market, others will use a draft pick to fill the hole (there are three edge rushers expected to be selected in the first 10 selections of the 2026 NFL Draft), and some of them will need to hope and pray that their Plan C works out.

For the Chargers, I think Plan B (or C) can simply be to slap the franchise tag on Oweh and worry about the rest later.

If your team is going to be a true championship contender, you need to be able to do something well that other teams struggle with. If the Chargers can't copy the blueprint of teams like the Seahawks, Broncos or Patriots that allows them to build a team around an inexpensive QB, maybe they can at least lean into a strength of theirs (pass rush) that is a growing weakness for the rest of the league.