Sheldon
Rankins
DT
#98
Sheldon Rankins
#98DT
Houston Texans
Height : 6' 2" · Weight : 305 lbs · Age : 32
NFL record
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | AST | SACK | FF | FR | YDS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Houston Texans | 3 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | Houston Texans | 17 | 35 | 15 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 32 |
| 2024 | Cincinnati Bengals | 7 | 18 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Houston Texans | 15 | 37 | 29 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| 2022 | New York Jets | 15 | 43 | 25 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | New York Jets | 16 | 32 | 15 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2020 | New Orleans Saints | 12 | 20 | 13 | 7 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | New Orleans Saints | 10 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | New Orleans Saints | 16 | 41 | 26 | 15 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | New Orleans Saints | 16 | 26 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | New Orleans Saints | 9 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Contract
Houston Texans payroll →- 2026 cap number
- 3.40 M$
- Average per year
- 8.50 M$
- Total value
- 17.0 M$
- Seasons left
- 3 · through 2028
2026
3.40 M$
Guaranteed
2027
9.40 M$
Partially guaranteed
2028
4.20 M$
Not guaranteed
Cap number: the season's salary plus the share of the signing bonus spread over the contract. Total value and average per year cover the whole contract, from its signing.
Advanced stats, 2026 Interior defensive line
NFL stats →2026 season, in progress (3 games played). The percentile ranks the player among regular interior defensive line: 90th means better than 90% of them.
Tackles
8
54th percentile
Sacks
2.0
88th percentile
Pressures
4
70th percentile
QB hits
4
84th percentile
Tackles for loss
3
85th percentile
Forced fumbles
0
44th percentile
Passes defended
1
80th percentile
Missed tackle rate
—
Defensive snaps
129
56th percentile
Games
3
Regular season. Data: nflverse (play-by-play, snap counts), Next Gen Stats, Pro Football Reference. EPA: expected points added. CPOE: completion percentage over expected.
2026 end-of-season projection
NFL trends →Projected WAR
0.2
Games
17
WAR 2026
0.0
Games played
3
WAR already earned, plus his pace (WAR per game over the last three seasons, 60/25/15, pulled toward the group average) over his team's remaining games, given his availability so far.
Trend
→ Stable (0)
- 20230.3 WAR · 0.020 per game
- 20240.0 WAR · 0.000 per game
- 20250.2 WAR · 0.012 per game
- 20260.0 WAR · 0.000 per game
The trend compares this season's WAR per game with last season's, weighted by games played.
Outlook, age included
-30 · 32 y.o. · the age when performance usually declines
It is only a projection. It knows nothing about injuries, trades or role changes.
Player ratings, 2026
All ratings →Ratings from 0 to 100, computed over four seasons from data, never by hand, against regulars in the same position group. 75 = established regular, 87 = 90th percentile, 95+ = elite.
OV · Overall
73
Established starter
- PRS
- Pass rush
- 79
- RDF
- Run defense
- 73
- TCK
- Tackling
- 66
- DUR
- Durability
- 70
- EX
- Experience
- 86
Why these ratings?Hide details
- PRS — Pass rush : Pressures, sacks and QB hits, per snap
- RDF — Run defense : Run tackles and tackles for loss, per snap
- TCK — Tackling : Tackles made and missed tackles
- DUR — Durability : Games played out of his team's, over several seasons
- EX — Experience : Seasons in the NFL
WAR and PAL Rating, 2026
How we rate →WAR: the EPA (expected points added) of every play, above replacement level, shared among those who made it, then converted to wins (35.3 points = one win). PAL Rating scores performance from 0 to 100 against regulars in the same group (50 = median).
WAR
0.0
#12 of 47 regular interior defensive line
PAL Rating
80 / 100
#10 of 47 regular interior defensive line
Value Rating · 2025
35 / 100
2025 PAL (42) against 2026 salary: the contract's average per year (APY), $8.5M.PAL expected for this salary: 56PAL: dimensions
Where WAR comes from (in wins)
Half the EPA of his sacks, interceptions, passes defended, forced fumbles, tackles for loss and QB hits, against his position's average per snap.
Yards allowed per target against his position's average, 0.12 points per yard (measured).
Replacement level: the share of defense the league spends on his position (by payroll), prorated by snaps.
How much better or worse than average his team's defense was (EPA allowed), minus what is already credited to players, prorated by snaps.
The individual part is splash plays and coverage. The rest is the position share and his team's defense, split by snaps played.
| Season | Team | G | WAR | PAL | OV | Tkl | Sacks | Prss | TFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | HOU | 3 | 0.0 | 80 | 73 | 8 | 2.0 | 4 | 3 |
| 2025 | HOU | 17 | 0.2 | 42 | 62 | 34 | 3.0 | 14 | 5 |
| 2024 | CIN | 7 | 0.0 | 9 | 53 | 15 | 1.0 | 2 | 1 |
| 2023 | HOU | 15 | 0.3 | 63 | 68 | 30 | 6.0 | 12 | 7 |
| 2022 | NYJ | 15 | 0.1 | 50 | 66 | 39 | 3.0 | 11 | 3 |
| 2021 | NYJ | 16 | 0.0 | 19 | 58 | 29 | 3.0 | 11 | 5 |
Sheldon Rankins in five questions
What are Sheldon Rankins's stats in 2026?
Sheldon Rankins has 2 sacks and 4 QB hits in 3 games in 2026.
How old and how tall is Sheldon Rankins?
Sheldon Rankins is 32 years old. He is 6'2" (188 cm) and weighs 304 lb (138 kg).
How good is Sheldon Rankins?
Sheldon Rankins produced 0.0 wins above replacement (WAR) in 2026 (season in progress), 21st of 47 players at his position in the NFL. His PAL rating is 80 out of 100: excellent for his position.
What number does Sheldon Rankins wear, and what team does he play for?
Sheldon Rankins plays for Houston Texans in the NFL, at DT, and wears number 98.
What is Sheldon Rankins's projection for 2026?
Our projection has him at 0.2 WAR over the full 2026 season, based on his weighted recent seasons and age.
