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Aldon Smith breaks 49ers franchise sack record

Aldon Smith has set the 49ers record for sacks in a season in just his second season.

Cary Edmondson-US PRESSWIRE

The San Francisco 49ers have to rewrite their record books after Aldon Smith set a new franchise record for sacks in a season with 18.5 on Sunday afternoon. Smith threw Jonathan Martin aside like he was a rag doll and took down Ryan Tannehill in the first quarter to break the old franchise mark held by Fred Dean.

Smith gave Martin a rude welcome back to the Bay Area. Probably armed with some help from Jim Harbaugh -- who was Martin's head coach at Stanford and must have had a few tips for his star pass rusher -- Smith made Martin look like a fool. He steamrolled the rookie and made his way into 49ers history with a highlight worthy sack.

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Amazingly, Smith is in just his second NFL season, but that is all it has taken him to establish himself as the 49ers' greatest pass rusher and one of the best in the league. Smith could even make a run at the NFL mark for sacks in a season, too, sitting just 4.5 sacks back of Michael Strahan's mark with most of this game and three more to play this season.