The Oregon Ducks have been playing as well as any team in the nation over the past few weeks, and that was highlighted with the win over the Ohio State Buckeyes in Week 7.
The last time we did one of these Pro Football Focus check-ins, the same couldn’t be said.
At the quarter-mark of the season, Oregon was 3-0, but close wins over Idaho and Boise State left a lot to be desired for this Dan Lanning squad. We were left remarking about how opportune it was for the Ducks to get a bye week after their non-conference slate, and projected that they could make some noise after getting reset before heading into Big Ten play.
We weren’t wrong.
The Ducks are now 6-0, ranked as the No. 2 team in the nation, and a heavy favorite to make it to the Big Ten Championship Game at the end of the regular season. By all means, they’ve been an elite team over the last few weeks.
One of the ways that we like to assess how things have transpired over the last few weeks is by looking at the player grades handed out by Pro Football Focus. Rather than look at these grades after each contest, as we have in years past, we’re going to revisit the numbers throughout the season, at the quarter, halfway, three-quarter, and end of the regular season. This way, we can get an overall snapshot of who is playing well for the Ducks, and how things change over time.
Here’s a look at the top offensive players for the Ducks so far through one-quarter of the season (minimum 100 snaps):
Oregon Ducks Offensive PFF Leaders
- QB Dillon Gabriel — 87.7
(Passing — 88.0 // Running — 61.5) - RB Jordan James — 84.7
(Running — 89.3 // Passing — 59.4) - WR Tez Johnson — 77.9
(Passing — 80.1 // Run Block — 62.3) - LT Ajani Cornelius — 75.1
(Pass Block — 76.3 // Run Block — 73.5) - TE Kenyon Sadiq — 71.4
(Passing — 70.2 // Run Block — 64.4) - TE Terrance Ferguson — 71.3
(Passing — 75.8 // Run Block — 57.4) - LT Josh Conerly — 70.0
(Pass Block — 56.4 // Run Block — 67.6) - LG Nishad Strother — 64.9
(Pass Block — 57.4 // Run Block — 71.6) - RB Noah Whittington — 63.3
(Running — 64.3 // Passing — 58.6) - WR Evan Stewart— 63.2
(Passing — 66.3 // Run Block — 38.1)
Here’s a look at the defensive side of the ball:
Oregon Ducks Defensive PFF Leaders
- DT Derrick Harmon — 88.2
(Rush D — 80.6 // Pass Rush — 86.8) - LB Bryce Boettcher — 86.8
(Tackling — 70.5 // Coverage — 83.0) - S Tysheem Johnson — 78.3
(Coverage — 77.2 // Tackling — 78.6) - DE Jordan Burch — 74.3
(Rush D — 63.9 // Pass Rush — 75.9) - EDGE Matayo Uiagalelei — 74.1
(Rush D — 66.4 // Pass Rush — 72.4) - STAR Brandon Johnson — 73.5
(Coverage — 73.6 // Tackling — 61.6) - CB Jabbar Muhammad — 73.5
(Coverage — 74.1 // Tackling — 80.6) - CB Nikko Reed — 71.1
(Coverage — 69.8 // Tackling — 67.5) - DT Jamaree Caldwell — 70.4
(Rush D — 69.1 // Pass Rush — 68.1) - LB Jeffrey Bassa — 70.3
(Tackling — 47.3 // Coverage — 67.7)
The grades aren’t all that surprising, highlighting a lot of the top players that we have seen on the field and pointing out some valuable depth pieces so far, such as Jayden Limar, Nishad Strother, and Bryce Boettcher.
We will see how things change once we get to the three-quarter mark of the season, which will come after the Michigan game.
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