Ravens veteran pass rusher Elvis Dumervil still has a piece of paper with "23" written on it taped up in his locker.
That's how many sacks it would take to beat former Giants defensive end Michael Strahan's single-season sack record.
"I didn't get the job done – individually or as a team," Dumervil said. "If I can hit that number, that'll mean we'll be in the Super Bowl, for sure."
Ever since he arrived in Baltimore before the 2013 season, Dumervil has talked about winning the Super Bowl. The ninth-year pro has yet to taste the game's sweetest fruit.
But that doesn't mean that Dumervil doesn't keep an eye on some personal milestones as well. This year, he's taking aim at two. He'll once again try to chase down Strahan and he's also 10 sacks away from hitting 100 for his career.
Asked if he's thinking about No. 100, Dumervil replied, "Yeah, absolutely."
"I think that's a great achievement to try to reach," Dumervil said. "So, the opportunity is there and that's not always the case with everybody. I'm grateful for that. It just shows the consistency, and I don't take that lightly."
Dumervil has been a model of consistency over his career. Only once has he posted fewer than 8.5 sacks. Most seasons he hovers around 10 with a couple years of spikes.
He logged 17 sacks in 2009 and matched his career-high in his second season with the Ravens last year, earning his fourth Pro Bowl invite. Dumervil has excelled in Baltimore in part because coaches have simply allowed him to do what he does best go after the quarterback.
According to Pro Football Focus, Dumervil was the third-best edge rushing outside linebacker in the league last year, trailing his former Denver teammate Von Miller and Kansas City's Justin Houston, who led the league with 22 sacks.
Dumervil has been doing it the same way for years. He's good at reading snap counts and tries to get explosive jumps off the ball. Then he utilizes his 5-foot-11 height to get leverage, and works in spins and relentless rush to get to the quarterback.
So how does Dumervil follow up his own act in 2015?
"You try to win games, you try to win championships," he said. "To me, there's nothing more important, because you can have the stats and accolades, but if you're sitting home, it really doesn't do any justice."
Unlike Suggs, who said at 32 years old he owed it to himself to take it easy this offseason, Dumervil said "can't afford to pace it."
"Everybody is different. [Suggs and I] may be the same cloth, but we're cut different," the 31-year-old Dumervil said.
"You've got to take advantage of every moment. You never know when the next time [will be]. So, I do consider it sacred. That's why every offseason you train as hard as you can, go into minicamps and training camp and you just try to be your best you. And then hopefully that can help the team get to where we all want to get to."
