Michael Bankston is a career quality starter β a pass rusher whose body of work places Bankston in the top quarter of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Bankston's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
Michael Bankston
A edge rusher with a top 30% among starters β the kind of consistent contributor every roster needs. Solid availability (exceptional availability β almost never missed time) added to their value.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 70 Β· #1630 Β· Above AverageWorth 70 points of value above a freely-available replacement edge rusher β top 36% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 7 of 9 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +10 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
7 cleared
2 replaced
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
51
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
7
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+10
Avg surplus
peak +20
7 seasons Γ ~10 surplus β VORP 70
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
1 grid split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1992 | β | ARI | 16 | β | 24 | 15 | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1993 | β | ARI | 16 | β | 66 | 46 | β | β | β | 3.0 | 3.0 | β | 3 | 2 | β | β | β |
| 1994 | β | ARI | 16 | β | 85 | 57 | β | β | β | 7.0 | 7.0 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1995 | β | ARI | 16 | β | 80 | 54 | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1996 | β | ARI | 16 | β | 75 | 42 | β | β | β | 0.5 | 0.5 | β | 5 | 3 | β | β | β |
| 1997 | β | ARI | 16 | β | 95 | 67 | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1998 | β | CIN | 16 | β | 70 | 49 | β | β | β | 4.5 | 4.5 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1999 | β | CIN | 16 | β | 48 | 34 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 6.0 | 20.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2000 | β | CIN | 16 | β | 47 | 33 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| Career | β | 144 | β | 590 | 397 | 28 | 11 | 6 | 27.0 | 44.0 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Defense
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 22 | ARI | 16 | β | 24 | 15 | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | 7.2 |
| 1993 | 23 | ARI | 16 | β | 66 | 46 | β | β | β | 3.0 | 3.0 | β | 3 | 2 | β | β | β | 9.4 |
| 1994 | 24 | ARI | 16 | β | 85 | 57 | β | β | β | 7.0 | 7.0 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β | 13 |
| 1995 | 25 | ARI | 16 | β | 80 | 54 | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | β | β | β | 7.1 |
| 1996 | 26 | ARI | 16 | β | 75 | 42 | β | β | β | 0.5 | 0.5 | β | 5 | 3 | β | β | β | 8.8 |
| 1997 | 27 | ARI | 16 | β | 95 | 67 | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β | 8.6 |
| 1998 | 28 | CIN | 16 | β | 70 | 49 | β | β | β | 4.5 | 4.5 | β | 1 | 0 | β | β | β | 11.3 |
| 1999 | 29 | CIN | 16 | β | 48 | 34 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 6.0 | 20.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 11.6 |
| 2000 | 30 | CIN | 16 | β | 47 | 33 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 5.5 |
| Career | 144 | 590 | 397 | 28 | 11 | 6 | β | β | 1 | 15 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 82.5 |
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 62 Β· Strong StarterA strong starter career by KV-H: a peak-driven profile that scores 62 of 100, era-normalized against sacks/g peers across 9 scored seasons.
59
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
67
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ1
Longevity
career length
Blend 62.2 Γ longevity 1 = KV-H 62Β· confidence 100%
What builds the career mark of 59
On-field 38.9
Availability 20.1
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative sacks/g)
1992bestavg 59elite 702000
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position13
Depth
of 100
Reached 14% of the all-time Sacks leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
14% of the all-time Sacks leader14
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 87%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average edge rushers aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Sam Houston State), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
Larry CentersFB6yEric SwannDT6yJeff FeaglesP4yBrent AlexanderFS4yAeneas WilliamsFS4yJamir MillerOLB4yClyde SimmonsDE3yTakeo SpikesILB3yRicky ProehlWR3yCorey DillonRB3yRob MooreWR3yTerry HoageDB3yTony McGeeTE3yFrank SandersWR3yChris OldhamDB3yBrian SimmonsLB3yGarrison HearstRB3yRandal HillWR3yJohn CopelandNT3yMarco BattagliaTE3yReinard WilsonLB3yRonald MooreRB3ySteve FoleyLB3yJevon LangfordDE3y
1992 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #100
#81Thomas McLemoreDE#85Rodney CulverRB#86Craig EricksonQB#88Ricardo McDonaldOLB#94Charles DavenportWR#97Dwight HollierMLB#98Roy BarkerDT#99Keith HamiltonDT#102Casey WeldonQB#103Edgar BennettRB#104Frankie SmithDB#105Tony McCoyDT#107Will FurrerQB#115Craig ThompsonTE#119Dexter McNabbRB#125Ed McDanielOLB
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterMichael inherited the Arizona Cardinals DL room from Eric Swann (1991β1999), and handed it to Clyde Simmons (1994β1995).
Eric Swann 1991β1999Michael Bankston 1992β1997Clyde Simmons 1994β1995Simeon Rice 1996β2000Mark Smith 1997β2000Russell Davis
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 2000final season
Last recorded season with CIN
- 1998team change
Joined CIN (from ARI)
- 1992draft
Drafted by ARI β Round 4, Pick 100
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts6'5" / 285 lb
Frame
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Historical Knox Β· KV-H
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 9-season peers. See all β
62
peak 67
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
C+1992
C+1993
B+1994
C+1995
C+1996
C+1997
B1998
B1999
C2000
Availability
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 9 seasons.
100%
Era Translator
Sacks translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Sacks | Sacks/G | β 2025 Sacks | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 2 | 0.1 | 2 | 0.1 |
| 1993 | 3 | 0.2 | 3 | 0.2 |
| 1994 | 7 | 0.4 | 7 | 0.4 |
| 1995 | 2 | 0.1 | 2 | 0.1 |
| 1996 | 0.5 | 0 | 1+0.5 | 0 |
| 1997 | 2 | 0.1 | 2 | 0.1 |
| 1998 | 4.5 | 0.3 | 4-0.5 | 0.2 |
| 1999 | 6 | 0.4 | 6 | 0.3 |
| 2000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:draft_picks, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (facts-only reference), espn.com:stats-api (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
70 career value over replacement β #1630 all-time of 4,642. 7.8/season above a replacement-level EDGE.
Draft OutcomeSteal β
Pick #100 (Rd 4) Β· ARI Β· 1992 Β· +23.3 vs expected KV-H
62actual
38.7 expected Β· Ξ+23.3
Fan Rating
Rate Michael Bankston β All-Time
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