Player
Sheldon Rankins
DT · Texans
Sheldon Rankins: facts drawn from the play-by-play.
10 seasons, 5 teams — Rankins is back in Houston after a one-year Cincinnati detour.
TrendCareer sacks by season
| Season | Team | Sacks | QB Hits | TFLs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | NO | 4 | 6 | 3 |
| 2017 | NO | 3 | 11 | 6 |
| 2018 | NO | 8 | 15 | 12 |
| 2019 | NO | 2 | 5 | 2 |
| 2020 | NO | 2 | 11 | 4 |
| 2021 | NYJ | 3 | 7 | 5 |
| 2022 | NYJ | 3 | 7 | 4 |
| 2023 | HOU | 6 | 10 | 9 |
| 2024 | CIN | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | HOU | 3 | 11 | 6 |
Rankins' 2018 with the Saints (8 sacks, 12 TFLs) is still his career peak. Now in his second tour with Houston, he's already at 3 sacks and 11 QB hits — bouncing back from a quiet 2024.
35 career sacks from a 3-tech DT — durable interior pressure across a decade.
MilestoneRankins has racked up 35 sacks and 84 QB hits as primarily an interior rusher — high-end longevity for a position where careers tend to fade fast. The 2018 Saints campaign (8 sacks, 12 TFLs) remains the high-water mark.
Cincinnati 2024 was an outlier — 1 sack, then bounced back in Houston.
SplitRankins by team stint
| Stint | Seasons | Sacks | QB Hits |
|---|---|---|---|
| NO | 5 | 19 | 48 |
| NYJ | 2 | 6 | 14 |
| HOU (2023) | 1 | 6 | 10 |
| CIN (2024) | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| HOU (2025) | 1 | 3 | 11 |
The Bengals year was the worst of his career — 1 sack, 1 QB hit, 1 TFL. Houston welcomed him back and he's already produced more in 2025 than his entire 2024.
2018 Saints season: 8 sacks AND 12 TFLs — only DT season in his career with both.
AnomalyIn a decade-long career, only 2018 saw Rankins post both 8+ sacks and 12+ TFLs in the same year. It's the kind of complete interior disruption that gets DTs paid — and the standard he's still measured against.
11 QB hits in 2025 — already matches his 2017 New Orleans peak.
ComparisonRankins has 11 QB hits in his second Houston stint — tied with his 2017 NO season for his second-best QB-hit total ever. The pressure rate is the story even though the raw sack count (3) is modest.
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