Through two weeks, the box score says Nik Bonitto has no sacks. Bonitto, though, does not sound especially bothered by that number, and for a pass rusher, that is usually the more interesting part of the story.
Bonitto said on Friday, via Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette, that he is not carrying any pressure over the slow start. "It's no pressure," he said, adding that he knows he is winning a lot of his rushes. That matters because sacks are the easiest stat to chase and the loudest stat to judge, but they do not always capture whether an edge rusher is actually affecting the game.
The best example came last week against Trevor Lawrence. Bonitto had a pressure that helped lead to a Riley Moss interception, a play that does not show up the same way a sack does but still changed the game for the Denver Broncos. For an outside linebacker whose job is often reduced to a single number, that kind of impact is exactly the point.
Why the numbers do not tell the full story
Bonitto's case is a familiar one in the NFL. Elite pass rushers are often judged by sack totals because sacks are easy to count and easy to reward, especially when awards and recognition come into play. But a rusher can still win his matchup, force a hurried throw or create the turnover that swings a drive without ever getting credit in the sack column.
That is what Bonitto is leaning on here. He is not saying the sacks do not matter. He is saying the process is sound, and the results are already showing up in ways that do not always fit neatly into the stat line.
There is also recent proof that he can finish plays when the chance is there. On the Jaguars' opening possession, Bonitto strip-sacked Trevor Lawrence, which is the kind of high-value play that changes games quickly and reminds everyone what he can do when he gets home.
The bigger takeaway is simple: two weeks is a very small sample, even for a pass rusher. Bonitto's 20-13 start in the Broncos' win may not have come with a sack total that jumps off the page, but his own view is that the rushes are there and the disruption is real. For Denver, that is a useful sign, because a pass rusher who is consistently winning can usually turn those wins into sacks soon enough.
