If you asked an average NFL fan who Chase Young is, he could probably tell you. Yet the label ‘bust’ would be more likely to grace his lips than “one of the NFL’s premier pass rushers.” Nonetheless, the latter would be an accurate description.
The former second-overall pick has reinvented himself in the Big Easy, following up his great production in 2025 with an incredible start to the 2026 campaign.
A Historic College Career and Unfathomable Hype
Drafted second overall by Washington, there were high expectations for Chase Young out of the gate. Upon entering the draft, Young was coming off a prolific junior year at Ohio State.
In 2019 with the Buckeyes, he had recorded 16.5 sacks, setting a single-season school record. Young broke this record in spite of missing two games. He was a Heisman finalist, only the fourth defensive lineman ever to hold that honor. He won six other national awards, was named the Jesse Owens Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year, and was the only unanimous selection to the Big Ten Network’s 2010 All-Decade Team.
Entering the 2020 NFL Draft, the hype for Young was through the roof. Young was labeled a generational prospect by many. Pro Football Focus (PFF) analysts Anthony Treash and Ben Linsey stated, “Chase Young is easily the best non-quarterback we have ever evaluated.”
An Underwhelming Tenure in Washington
Young had a solid start to his career, but he was far from being the game-wrecker that was expected. In his rookie season, the Ohio State product recorded 7.5 sacks and 42 pressures. Among a weak rookie defender class, Young’s production was good enough to win Defensive Rookie of the Year.
The expectation was that Young would take the step into being a force of havoc the next year. The opposite was true. Over the next two years, Young played only twelve games and recorded 1.5 sacks.
Heading into the 2023 Season, the Commanders declined Young’s fifth-year option. The 2023 season was now a contract year for the 2020 2nd overall pick. Young would have his best performance with Washington that year, recording 5 sacks and 38 pressures through seven games before being traded to the 49ers at the deadline.
On the 49ers, Young would fail to replicate his production with Washington that year, recording 3.5 sacks and 36 pressures through 12 games. Not seeing enough, the 49ers would not re-sign Young, and the once-generational prospect hit the open market. Over the four years of his rookie contract, Young recorded a pedestrian 10.3% pressure rate and 17.5 sacks.
New Orleans Comes Calling
Around the time of the 2020 NFL Draft, one may have thought that Young would shatter the market if he hit free agency. This was far from the case.
Young hadn’t warranted top dollar to this point. Ahead of 2024 free agency, analyst Greg Rosenthal wrote of Young, “If the 49ers couldn’t turn Young into a consistent force after acquiring him via midseason trade in 2023, what team can?… He looks more like a second or third rusher than a lead guy.”
On March 18, Young signed a one-year $13 million prove-it deal with the New Orleans Saints. The deal was far from top dollar, having an annual value of roughly half of what Danielle Hunter signed for in the same offseason.
In his first year with the Saints, Young failed to have an eye-popping season. Yet there were signs of potential. Young recorded the highest pressure rate of his career at 13.7% (excluding his abbreviated 2022 season in which he played three games).
The Saints saw enough and re-signed Young on a three-year, $51 million deal. The deal was once again far from top dollar, but it was a good deal for Young’s production so far. Still, Rosenthal’s words looked right. Young looked like a second or third pass rusher.
That was the case until 2025.
Young’s Year 6 Breakout
In 2025, Young recorded double-digit sacks for the first time in his NFL career. His 10 sacks ranked 15th in the NFL, which seems solid but not elite. However, context gives the former DROY a boost.
Young missed five games on the year. He was the only player in the top 15 for sacks to have fewer than 300 pass rush snaps. Indeed, among players with at least 200 pass rush snaps, only Myles Garrett had a higher rate of sacks per pass rush. In 2025, Garrett set the single-season NFL sack record and won Defensive Player of the Year. Additionally, the year-six standout ended the year on a hot streak, recording five sacks in his last four games.
Furthermore, PFF charts a stat known as pass-rush productivity (PRP). The formula combines sacks with other pressures, with sacks weighted higher, to measure overall impact. Young ranked fourth with a score of 11.4, tied with Myles Garrett.
Young’s pressure rate continued to grow as well, pressuring the quarterback on 17.2% of his pass rush snaps. On the year, the Saints pass rusher recorded his highest pass-rush grade to date, landing a ‘high-quality‘ rating of 86.3. It was the first time Young recorded a ‘high-quality’ pass-rush rating in his NFL career.
Young Has Dominated the Young 2026 Season
Fast forward to this year, and Young has picked up where he left off at the end of last year. Through three games, Young has already recorded 3.5 sacks, tied for fourth in the league. Additionally, it was Young who hit Goff on the controversial ‘intentional forward pass‘. If the play had been upheld as a fumble, Young would be second in sacks with 4.5.
On the young year, the Saints’ standout has recorded an ‘elite’ 90.3 pass rush grade, per PFF, which is fourth among players with at least 10 pass rush snaps. His PRP is 11.3, fifth among defenders with 50 pass rush snaps. Young has gotten home multiple times in each of the last two games, with 1.5 sacks against Baltimore and 2 against Las Vegas. He’s recorded a very solid pressure rate of 14.6%.
One aspect of Young’s game that has been especially solid since last year is his conversion rate. Last year, Young converted 24.5% of his pressures into sacks, a great rate that ranked 15th in the NFL among pass rushers with at least 200 pass rush snaps. This year, Young has converted 41.7% of his pressures into sacks.
While it is unreasonable to expect Young’s conversion rate to stay above 40% for the entire season, continued excellence in this area is encouraging. Rather than Young lucking out on sacks last year, his hot start this year points towards Young having an elite ability to get the quarterback on the ground when he gets close.
Young’s early dominance has been essential to the Saints’ defense. The seven-year veteran has as many sacks as all his teammates combined. His 12 pressures are almost double that of the Saint with the second most. While the Saints’ defense has been far from elite, Young’s pressure off the edge is a huge reason why the Saints have had an average pass defense rather than a bad one.
Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
Far from a second or third rusher, Chase Young has emerged as one of the top pass rushers in the NFL. It just took some time.
Sometimes, things take a little time to blossom. The same is true of people and players. Even ‘generational’ ones. Young didn’t have the start to his career that was expected of him. Yet finding the right place is often a big piece of the puzzle. Young seems to have found that in New Orleans and has become the premier player that many predicted him to be.
New Orleans has been rewarded for their investment as well, finding the cornerstone player of their defense. If this year the Superdome hosts its first playoff game since Drew Brees‘ retirement, Young will likely be a big reason why.
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