After Alex Ovechkin broke an impossible record over the weekend, are there any iconic NFL records that could be broken soon?
A major mark in hockey’s record book just fell. Could we something similar happen in football in the near future?
On Sunday afternoon, Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals broke the longstanding NHL goal record, reaching 895 career goals to topple Wayne Gretzky. One of the most prestigious titles in hockey history now has a new name next to it. For many years, it seemed improbable due to the sizable record and Gretzky’s longevity. Yet Ovechkin managed to beat the record in the exact same number of games played. At age 39, it is unclear when Ovechkin will step away, but either way, he achieved a goal that most only dream of.
With such a lofty milestone getting passed in the NHL, how about the NFL and its all-time best numbers? The NFL has a lengthy list of records (just look at the Wikipedia page ) with a varying level of prestige, but which of these could fall before long?
Today’s Question of the Day is:
Which NFL records could be broken in the near future?
My answer: Tackles, sacks, and longest field goal.
The catalyst for many records getting broken in the future will be the number of games played. The NFL recently expanded to 17 games, and an 18th game could be coming in the near future. Whereas players like Tom Brady and Drew Brees played most of their careers on a 16-game schedule, a player like Patrick Mahomes could top their numbers purely based on increased volume.
The big three passing stats—completions, yards, and touchdowns—would benefit from the added game, but the bar has been set ridiculously high. Brady leads each category with 7,753 completions, 89,214 passing yards, and 649 touchdown passes. Mahomes is the leading challenger to Brady’s records, sitting at 2,778 completions, 32,352 yards, and 245 touchdowns. Assuming an 18-game season, Mahomes—who turns 30 in September—would need to average 27.6 completions per game, 315.9 yards per game, and 2.2 touchdowns per game to reach Brady’s totals by his age 40 season. Mahomes is currently at 24.8 completions per game and 288.9 yards per game, below the required average, but his touchdown rate of 2.18 per game is spot on. If he plays into his 40s like Brady did, then he could feasibly do it. However, expecting any professional athlete to play that late into their career is a big endeavor.
Other offensive stats like receiving and rushing totals are unlikely to be broken soon. On the receiving side, Jerry Rice obliterated the record book, and even with 18 games, his stats could be untouchable. A 16-year veteran would need to average over 96 receptions, 1,430 yards, and 12 touchdowns per season to top Rice. For reference, only three players scored more than a dozen touchdowns in 2024 and just two receivers had over 1,400 receiving yards. That is an absurd rate to match.
As for running backs, the volume simply is not there anymore. Derrick Henry, the poster child for bellcow running backs of our era, still trails Emmitt Smith by a whopping 2,054 carries, 6,932 yards, and 58 touchdowns. Not only do you need to be an elite running back for over a decade, but you need to be healthy. Given the rise of running back committees and a transition to passing offenses, it could be a long time before those rushing records fall.
A record that will undoubtedly get broken soon is the longest field goal. The record currently stands at 66 yards (we do not need to talk about when it happened or against which team), and there are multiple cannon-legged kickers capable of pushing that limit. Two names that immediately come to mind are Jake Bates of the Detroit Lions and Brandon Aubrey of the Dallas Cowboys . Aubrey has a career-long of 65 yards, while Bates kicked a 64-yarder during the 2024 UFL season. They have the youth (Aubrey is 30, Bates is 26) to garner many more attempts over the next few years. Matt Prater and Graham Gano have kicked field goals of 64 and 63 yards, respectively, but both are on the last leg of their careers. Kickers have only gotten better and better over the past decade, so expect this record to fall within years.
I think we could also see the combined tackles and sacks records get rewritten before long. For tacklers, Bobby Wagner is 221 combined tackles shy of Ray Lewis, and while Wagner will turn 35 this summer, he is aging like fine wine, having earned himself an All-Pro nod just last year. He has averaged 155 combine tackles over his 13-year NFL career, so even if his pace falls off from career norms, he could still pass Lewis. Looking at solo tackles, Wagner trails Lewis by a wider margin (1,568 for Lewis and 1,071 for Wagner), but I have always valued combined tackles more due to the inconsistency when it comes to “awarding” tackles.
The sack leaderboard will be a difficult mountain to summit, but I think four players could have a shot. Bruce Smith leads the NFL with 200 career sacks, and while there are many active players with over 100 sacks, only two of them strike me as a candidates to challenge Smith. Myles Garrett (102.5 sacks) and T.J. Watt (108) are two of the best sack artists in the NFL, and while they are around the age 30 mark (Garrett will be 30 in December, Watt will be 31 in October), I could see them playing well into their late 30s. If Garrett and Watt played another eight seasons, they would need to average around 12 sacks per season to reach the 200 plateau. Watt has averaged 15.2 sacks per season, while Garrett has a pace of 14.9 per game. It will be tough for both players to maintain that average for another eight years, but they have the pass rushing prowess to carry themselves for many seasons to come.
The other two candidates on my list are Aidan Hutchinson and Micah Parsons. Even eliminating any Detroit Lions homerism, Hutchinson has demonstrated a sky-high ceiling as a pass rusher. His career average of 12.4 sacks per season is not otherworldly, but he exploded onto the scene in 2024 with 7.5 sacks in just five games. That is a pace of 1.5 sacks per game, which would match Watt’s record-tying 2021 season when he recorded 22.5 sacks over 15 games. As for Parsons, his pace of 14.2 sacks per year puts him in striking distance, but with a career-high of 14, he could use a few massive seasons to help catapult him into the conversation. Either one of these players has the talent to top the 22.5-sack single season record, but they will need continued production and longevity to challenge for the all-time record.
Which NFL records could get toppled in the next decade or so? Let us know in the comments below.