Jadeveon Clowney, Whitney Mercilus make PFF's top 15 edge rushers

8. Whitney Mercilus, Houston Texans

Whitney Mercilus is a lot like Ingram in terms of slowly developing into the first-round edge rusher the team thought he could be, but just taking a little more time to do so than expected. Mercilus posted his second consecutive double-digit sack season, and ended 2016 with 76 total QB pressures. Unlike some others on the list, he also got to experience a pair of playoff games, and averaged six total QB pressures across those two games, notching three sacks. Mercilus has become a dominant player in his own right after spending his time in the Shadow of J.J. Watt in Houston.

9. Jadeveon Clowney, Houston Texans

Jadeveon Clowney was supposed to be an instant dominant force because of his physical gifts, but his pro career started slowly due to injuries as much as anything else. Over the past two seasons, though, he has had a clearer run of things, and ended this season in the best run of form of his NFL career. Clowney didn’t have as much total pressure as other players on this list, but by the end of the season he was taking over games, and was the best player on the field in Houston’s first playoff game against the Raiders, where his interception was one of several key plays that swung the game. Clowney’s 2017 could be even better than his 2016 season, which was still good enough to rank in the top 10.