The Texas A&M pass rush leaves much to be desired after the Miami loss

Where’s the pass rush? DJ Durkin has to reevaluate his scheme to benefit the most talented position group

I’d like to believe that most people who watched the Texas A&M offense last year compared to this year can see how much better they look just two games into Bobby Petrino’s offense. However, the defense is a completely different story, and it’s not a good look for DJ Durkin.

Even though the entire defensive unit received a failing grade from me, I want to focus on the crown jewel of this team. The Aggie defensive line is littered with five and four-star recruits with SEC experience, but for some reason, they have not had that jump under Durkin’s watch.

Miami’s quarterback Tyler Van Dyke and went off for 374 yards and five touchdowns. He rarely felt any pressure all night allowing extra time for the wide receivers to break loose for easy receptions. I was sold on Durkin being able to play to the strength of his players, but we are still seeing two things they need some additional film time.

First – No more three-man fronts. Overall, it never seems to go well, and while the linebacker play is still working itself out, teams just gash the defense with six- or seven-yard runs. With most of the top talent being on the defensive line that needs to be a way to make sure they are the focal point of the disruption. That leads me to the next issue.

Second – The lack of a pass rush. The run defense looks a little better than last year, but I believe that just has more to do with all the freshmen getting a year in an elite college weightlifting program. The pass rush on the other hand is nonexistent so far through the first two games. It’s obvious at this point that more pressure is going to have to be brought going forward since the down lineman cannot do it consistently on their own.

Thats not a knock on the talent along the line, but they are a big and long-limbed defensive line, but they are not off the charts speed wise. So, when power is not working the line gets stuck in the mud leaving a secondary that’s still trying to figure out a rotation, out to dry. What I’m getting at is if you are already getting beat when you are not bringing pressure, you might as well get beat throwing the whole house at an offense.

During the post-game interview Jimbo Fisher pointed out that Van Dyke had too much time to sit in the pocket and just wait for someone to come open.

“We gotta get pressure. We have to affect the quarterback a little.”

I personally believe implementing those two changes would stabilize the defense until they eventually give DJ Durkin his walking papers at some point this season. Something has to be done to make sure they stay confident and keep recruits from second guessing joining this defensive room.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=7]