Report card for Woody's D so far

[alagold]

Compared to last year we are...

Fwiw we are facing almost the exact same number of plays defended this year as last.

5.7 ypp this year compared to 5.52 last year.
362 ypg this year compared to 354 last year
28.2 ppg allowed this year compared to 26.5 last year.
1.44 sacks per game this year compared to 1.55 last year
4.33 tackles for loss per game this year compared to 4.27 last year.
4.25 yards per rush this year vs 4.53 last year.
7.2 yards per attempt given up this year vs 6.6 last year
2.2 turnovers per game this year vs .9 last year
48.1% third down defense this year vs 30.9 last year.
5.2 points per red zone attempt this year vs 4.3 points last year. (in general we get more stops but give up more TDs as well)
4.33 red zone attempts per game vs 3.27 last year.
2.2 passes broken up per game this year vs 3.2 last year
2.8 hurries per game this year vs 2 last year.
4 punts per game forced this year compared to 5.2 last year.
3.2 20+ yards plays given up this year vs 4 last year.

In general we are way better at creating turnovers but worse at most other things and significantly worse on third downs. That leads to us having significantly more redzone defenses and being significantly worse at defending them. To put it this way the extra turnover per game likely is worth about a 7 point swing but the extra redzone attempts and the worse defense when there almost certainly negates that. Otherwise we aren't giving up more big plays like people feared but are also not getting more sacks like people thought. In general we are only slightly better at tackles for loss than last year (to the point where it is maybe one more per year, yes year not game). Overall I know people are happy with more turnovers, and for some that is enough, but in the grand scheme of things this is a typical Johnson defense. And that's not a good thing.

Ivy,
Good stuff.
The KEY here is the last 3 games from last yr are not in these stats.(nor this yr of course) These are the games in which we went to hell in a handbasket pretty much.It will be interesting to see if true for THIS yr.So lets look at stats at END of yr.

 

[lv20gt]

Ivy,
Good stuff.
The KEY here is the last 3 games from last yr are not in these stats.(nor this yr of course) These are the games in which we went to hell in a handbasket pretty much.It will be interesting to see if true for THIS yr.So lets look at stats at END of yr.

The stats from last year are through the entire year, including those last 3 games.

 

[sidewalkGTfan]

Just a note, our secondary was full of upper classmen last year. How much of a difference that makes is probably up to each person, but I have to think that has hurt us on pass D to some degree this year.

 

[vamosjackets]

Compared to last year we are...

Fwiw we are facing almost the exact same number of plays defended this year as last.

5.7 ypp this year compared to 5.52 last year.
362 ypg this year compared to 354 last year
28.2 ppg allowed this year compared to 26.5 last year.
1.44 sacks per game this year compared to 1.55 last year
4.33 tackles for loss per game this year compared to 4.27 last year.
4.25 yards per rush this year vs 4.53 last year.
7.2 yards per attempt given up this year vs 6.6 last year
2.2 turnovers per game this year vs .9 last year
48.1% third down defense this year vs 30.9 last year.
5.2 points per red zone attempt this year vs 4.3 points last year. (in general we get more stops but give up more TDs as well)
4.33 red zone attempts per game vs 3.27 last year.
2.2 passes broken up per game this year vs 3.2 last year
2.8 hurries per game this year vs 2 last year.
4 punts per game forced this year compared to 5.2 last year.
3.2 20+ yards plays given up this year vs 4 last year.

In general we are way better at creating turnovers but worse at most other things and significantly worse on third downs. That leads to us having significantly more redzone defenses and being significantly worse at defending them. To put it this way the extra turnover per game likely is worth about a 7 point swing but the extra redzone attempts and the worse defense when there almost certainly negates that. Otherwise we aren't giving up more big plays like people feared but are also not getting more sacks like people thought. In general we are only slightly better at tackles for loss than last year (to the point where it is maybe one more per year, yes year not game). Overall I know people are happy with more turnovers, and for some that is enough, but in the grand scheme of things this is a typical Johnson defense. And that's not a good thing.

The question for me on these stats is where the improvement is measured ... almost like "splits" in the 100m dash ... for this year, the splits are more important than the overall measure. Would the last half or third of our season rank better than the first half or third?

 

[gtwcf]

Compared to last year we are...

Fwiw we are facing almost the exact same number of plays defended this year as last.

5.7 ypp this year compared to 5.52 last year.
362 ypg this year compared to 354 last year
28.2 ppg allowed this year compared to 26.5 last year.
1.44 sacks per game this year compared to 1.55 last year
4.33 tackles for loss per game this year compared to 4.27 last year.
4.25 yards per rush this year vs 4.53 last year.
7.2 yards per attempt given up this year vs 6.6 last year
2.2 turnovers per game this year vs .9 last year
48.1% third down defense this year vs 30.9 last year.
5.2 points per red zone attempt this year vs 4.3 points last year. (in general we get more stops but give up more TDs as well)
4.33 red zone attempts per game vs 3.27 last year.
2.2 passes broken up per game this year vs 3.2 last year
2.8 hurries per game this year vs 2 last year.
4 punts per game forced this year compared to 5.2 last year.
3.2 20+ yards plays given up this year vs 4 last year.

In general we are way better at creating turnovers but worse at most other things and significantly worse on third downs. That leads to us having significantly more redzone defenses and being significantly worse at defending them. To put it this way the extra turnover per game likely is worth about a 7 point swing but the extra redzone attempts and the worse defense when there almost certainly negates that. Otherwise we aren't giving up more big plays like people feared but are also not getting more sacks like people thought. In general we are only slightly better at tackles for loss than last year (to the point where it is maybe one more per year, yes year not game). Overall I know people are happy with more turnovers, and for some that is enough, but in the grand scheme of things this is a typical Johnson defense. And that's not a good thing.

There was a noticeable change around the Clemson game (Trevor Lawrence is really good!). We did not play good defense against USF and Pitt.

And you're comparing a group that had 4-5 years of experience with a defense vs. a Spring and Fall practice.

We are also playing a lot more people now, which I think will give us more consistent results year over year. With Roof, it seemed like we would have a great year with a bunch of 2-3 year starters and then nose dive.

We've also had more blowouts this year than last, and we've given up some serious yardage with 2nd stringers in (See Louisville, VT, BG)

 

[Jacket in Dairyland]

Defense is a work in progress, but one thing you have to give CNW credit for is this: He's giving our offense extra possessions. In theory, you give CPJ extra possessions with our offense and it's a killer for the other team.

We're REALLY seeing that the last few games. As efficient as the offense has been, it just puts a lot of pressure on the other coach to get out of their game plan.

Now we have to work on not giving up the big plays, and get more sound on staying in our gaps and coverage fundamentals on the back end. I think those things will come with experience, but in the mean time we're giving our offense the chance to control tempo.[/QUOT

I like seeing us get pressure, force turnovers and bringing the lumber when given the opportunity. All the technical stuff will come with time and experience, I really like the mindset he has instilled.

Agree completely !!

 

[Jacket in Dairyland]

The question for me on these stats is where the improvement is measured ... almost like "splits" in the 100m dash ... for this year, the splits are more important than the overall measure. Would the last half or third of our season rank better than the first half or third?

IMO, considering it's CNW's first year , that is the most important measure. But it somehow has to be compared with the level of competition, also.
Last year was Roof's what 5th year ? He had his players , his scheme was in place , etc ....so he had his best shot. Woody is just getting started.

 

[Jerry the Jacket]

I don't see much difference. We were below average last year and we are below average this year. We still can not count on our defense to make a stop when we have to have one. We still do not play with fire or a bad attitude. We need some guys that enjoy knocking the pure T hell out of somebody. We have a couple but could use a ton more.

Go Jackets!

 

[AE 87]

For much of 2017, we played decent on defense. From my points/drive stat, it was one of our better years for many games. The killer was when we were bad were awful.

I have a new points/drive thread which explains these tables, but here is a summary of our points/drive per game for 2017.

Our Pitt and UNC games were great. WF, CU, and vpi were average. Miami, uva, and georgie were below average. Tenn and Duke were bad.

Now here are our Power 5 opponents for 2018:

While our raw ppd stats are not as good, none of our ratios are close to last year's Tenn and Duke games. In fact, it's possible that some of the LOLvl and vpi numbers arise from change in our D because of how well we were scoring on O.

I was hoping for better results this year based on just raw DPPDvP5, but I'm looking forward to seeing how this ratio stat plays out for the rest of the year.

NOTE: This is just a convenient stat for comparison purposes. It doesn't take into consideration starting field position etc, so it's not perfect.

 

[RamblinWreck92]

C+ but studying harder and getting better grades each week. If for no other reason than generating TOs.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Compared to last year we are...

Fwiw we are facing almost the exact same number of plays defended this year as last.

5.7 ypp this year compared to 5.52 last year.
362 ypg this year compared to 354 last year
28.2 ppg allowed this year compared to 26.5 last year.
1.44 sacks per game this year compared to 1.55 last year
4.33 tackles for loss per game this year compared to 4.27 last year.
4.25 yards per rush this year vs 4.53 last year.
7.2 yards per attempt given up this year vs 6.6 last year
2.2 turnovers per game this year vs .9 last year
48.1% third down defense this year vs 30.9 last year.
5.2 points per red zone attempt this year vs 4.3 points last year. (in general we get more stops but give up more TDs as well)
4.33 red zone attempts per game vs 3.27 last year.
2.2 passes broken up per game this year vs 3.2 last year
2.8 hurries per game this year vs 2 last year.
4 punts per game forced this year compared to 5.2 last year.
3.2 20+ yards plays given up this year vs 4 last year.

In general we are way better at creating turnovers but worse at most other things and significantly worse on third downs. That leads to us having significantly more redzone defenses and being significantly worse at defending them. To put it this way the extra turnover per game likely is worth about a 7 point swing but the extra redzone attempts and the worse defense when there almost certainly negates that. Otherwise we aren't giving up more big plays like people feared but are also not getting more sacks like people thought. In general we are only slightly better at tackles for loss than last year (to the point where it is maybe one more per year, yes year not game). Overall I know people are happy with more turnovers, and for some that is enough, but in the grand scheme of things this is a typical Johnson defense. And that's not a good thing.

Experience in the secondary last year with Golden, the Austin twins, and Step explain a lot of that but on defense it is much more about the Jimmies and Joes in comparison to offense. Coach Woody is doing about as well as can be expected under the circumstances but it is remarkable how similar the stats are.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Just a note, our secondary was full of upper classmen last year. How much of a difference that makes is probably up to each person, but I have to think that has hurt us on pass D to some degree this year.

I think it makes a difference because the Austins and AJ Gray were so good at open field tackling. There would be very little that those guys had not seen but when you are not getting pressure on the quarterback all that goes out the window. Pressure on the quarterback is the single biggest determinant in today's game. There is no getting around it because the receivers (except for ours) are just too good to cover for very long.

 

[AE 87]

I am more hopeful with CNWs 1st year compared to CTRs 5th, especially in light of performance elsewhere.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

I am more hopeful with CNWs 1st year compared to CTRs 5th, especially in light of performance elsewhere.

Yep. Woody's upside is considerable while Coach Roof may have hit his ceiling.