Rutgers rushing defense: where things are going awry...

[mb5789]

Our rushing defense has been an issue this season, we currently rank 89th (out of 133 FBS teams) in rushing yards per game allowed at 161.3 ypg. On a per rush basis, Rutgers is even worse at 5.5 yards per carry allowed, which ranks 119th in the FBS. Mind you, this is also against some awful offenses relative to what we'll face later in the year.

Last year Rutgers ranked 45th in rushing defense (yards per game, 141.7) and 56th in yards per carry (4.0) over the course of a full season. So where is Rutgers getting beaten in the run game?

Two main areas: Outside runs and QB scrambles.

Here's how Rutgers' run defense performed against it's opponents this season on inside runs, outside runs and QB scrambles...

Washington
inside runs: 16/109 (6.8 ypc)
outside runs: 10/93 (9.3 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/9 (4.5 ypc)

Virginia Tech
inside runs: 11/52 (4.7 ypc)
outside runs: 13/100 (7.7 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/36 (18 ypc)

Akron
inside runs: 12/36 (3 ypc)
outside runs: 8/115 (14.4 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/24 (12 ypc)

Howard
inside runs: 14/38 (2.7 ypc)
outside runs: 19/106 (5.6 ypc)
QB scrambles: 1/11 (11 ypc)

QB scrambles are more forgivable, as they're fairly infrequent and typically occur when a play breaks down. But the outside runs are gashing this run defense. I've noticed a few things on outside runs this year that I hope can change throughout the year.

1. Our LBs haven't been able to fight through the trash to get through the line nearly as often as they were last year. Toure and Jennings (along with Powell) did a great job of that last year.
2. Our DEs haven't been getting the push needed in the run game and backs are able to break contain and bounce things outside more often than last season.
3. On outside runs, opposing OTs and TEs have been very sticky to our LBs and Ss in pursuit which have opened holes to the outside.
4. We have been whiffing on a LOT of tackles this year. Last season, we had 52 missed tackles in the run game all season in 13 games (4 missed tackles per game, 4th highest tackling grade on PFF) and this season alone we have 20 missed tackles in the run game already (6.7 missed tackles per game, 89th in tackling grade on PFF).

I wish it was one thing and it was an easy fix, but I think we're seeing a lot of young players getting more reps than anticipated (Djabome, Kaj Sanders, etc) along with veterans not getting the jobs expected of them done in the run game enough. These are problems that need to get fixed, but a lot easier to deal with when you're 3-0.

 

[ClassOf02]

This is a good analysis. To be fair, if you take out the long Akron run for their last TD, that game’s outside run average drops to about 6 ypc. But point still stands. Harasymiak is going to to have to really earn his pay this year. Add in our question marks at the safety position and this defense is no where near as stout as we felt it would be coming in.

 

[beaced]

Our rushing defense has been an issue this season, we currently rank 89th (out of 133 FBS teams) in rushing yards per game allowed at 161.3 ypg. On a per rush basis, Rutgers is even worse at 5.5 yards per carry allowed, which ranks 119th in the FBS. Mind you, this is also against some awful offenses relative to what we'll face later in the year.

Last year Rutgers ranked 45th in rushing defense (yards per game, 141.7) and 56th in yards per carry (4.0) over the course of a full season. So where is Rutgers getting beaten in the run game?

Two main areas: Outside runs and QB scrambles.

Here's how Rutgers' run defense performed against it's opponents this season on inside runs, outside runs and QB scrambles...

Virginia Tech
inside runs: 11/52 (4.7 ypc)
outside runs: 13/100 (7.7 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/36 (18 ypc)

Akron
inside runs: 12/36 (3 ypc)
outside runs: 8/115 (14.4 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/24 (12 ypc)

Howard
inside runs: 14/38 (2.7 ypc)
outside runs: 19/106 (5.6 ypc)
QB scrambles: 1/11 (11 ypc)

QB scrambles are more forgivable, as they're fairly infrequent and typically occur when a play breaks down. But the outside runs are gashing this run defense. I've noticed a few things on outside runs this year that I hope can change throughout the year.

1. Our LBs haven't been able to fight through the trash to get through the line nearly as often as they were last year. Toure and Jennings (along with Powell) did a great job of that last year.
2. Our DEs haven't been getting the push needed in the run game and backs are able to break contain and bounce things outside more often than last season.
3. On outside runs, opposing OTs and TEs have been very sticky to our LBs and Ss in pursuit which have opened holes to the outside.
4. We have been whiffing on a LOT of tackles this year. Last season, we had 52 missed tackles in the run game all season in 13 games (4 missed tackles per game, 4th highest tackling grade on PFF) and this season alone we have 20 missed tackles in the run game already (6.7 missed tackles per game, 89th in tackling grade on PFF).

I wish it was one thing and it was an easy fix, but I think we're seeing a lot of young players getting more reps than anticipated (Djabome, Kaj Sanders, etc) along with veterans not getting the jobs expected of them done in the run game enough. These are problems that need to get fixed, but a lot easier to deal with when you're 3-0.

Your post was So numeric.I really dislike all those number type posts.When you wrote in prose it was good

 

[kupuna133]

This is a typical bend don’t break Schiano defense. Tough red zone defense. Keep the action in front of you and rely on good LB and DB tackling. And this is where this defense is lacking. Issue is LB’s are not playing up to potential, coming off injury, or out due to injury. The DB’s have taken awful angles and have not been reliable in run support. These issues are all easily fixable with time, coaching and film review.

 

[Arizona Knight]

We had three very good LB’s last year. One graduated, one is out for the season, and one is coming off a serious injury and working back in.

If Mo Toure was here and Reem was 100%, we are not having this conversation

 

[RUPete]

We had three very good LB’s last year. One graduated, one is out for the season, and one is coming off a serious injury and working back in.

If Mo Toure was here and Reem was 100%, we are not having this conversation

I agree. But that's what we're dealing with and the discussion is legitimate.

 

[beaced]

Our rushing defense has been an issue this season, we currently rank 89th (out of 133 FBS teams) in rushing yards per game allowed at 161.3 ypg. On a per rush basis, Rutgers is even worse at 5.5 yards per carry allowed, which ranks 119th in the FBS. Mind you, this is also against some awful offenses relative to what we'll face later in the year.

Last year Rutgers ranked 45th in rushing defense (yards per game, 141.7) and 56th in yards per carry (4.0) over the course of a full season. So where is Rutgers getting beaten in the run game?

Two main areas: Outside runs and QB scrambles.

Here's how Rutgers' run defense performed against it's opponents this season on inside runs, outside runs and QB scrambles...

Virginia Tech
inside runs: 11/52 (4.7 ypc)
outside runs: 13/100 (7.7 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/36 (18 ypc)

Akron
inside runs: 12/36 (3 ypc)
outside runs: 8/115 (14.4 ypc)
QB scrambles: 2/24 (12 ypc)

Howard
inside runs: 14/38 (2.7 ypc)
outside runs: 19/106 (5.6 ypc)
QB scrambles: 1/11 (11 ypc)

QB scrambles are more forgivable, as they're fairly infrequent and typically occur when a play breaks down. But the outside runs are gashing this run defense. I've noticed a few things on outside runs this year that I hope can change throughout the year.

1. Our LBs haven't been able to fight through the trash to get through the line nearly as often as they were last year. Toure and Jennings (along with Powell) did a great job of that last year.
2. Our DEs haven't been getting the push needed in the run game and backs are able to break contain and bounce things outside more often than last season.
3. On outside runs, opposing OTs and TEs have been very sticky to our LBs and Ss in pursuit which have opened holes to the outside.
4. We have been whiffing on a LOT of tackles this year. Last season, we had 52 missed tackles in the run game all season in 13 games (4 missed tackles per game, 4th highest tackling grade on PFF) and this season alone we have 20 missed tackles in the run game already (6.7 missed tackles per game, 89th in tackling grade on PFF).

I wish it was one thing and it was an easy fix, but I think we're seeing a lot of young players getting more reps than anticipated (Djabome, Kaj Sanders, etc) along with veterans not getting the jobs expected of them done in the run game enough. These are problems that need to get fixed, but a lot easier to deal with when you're 3-0.

The younger three players are ,the more mistakes they make.Thhey will improve in and after each succeeding game.Count on it

 

[Extra Point]

The defense misses Deion Jennings. He was a heck of a football player.

 

[Kbee3]

The defense misses Deion Jennings. He was a heck of a football player.

I don't think we've done so well replacing Iton either.

 

[Shelby65]

This is a typical bend don’t break Schiano defense. Tough red zone defense. Keep the action in front of you and rely on good LB and DB tackling. And this is where this defense is lacking. Issue is LB’s are not playing up to potential, coming off injury, or out due to injury. The DB’s have taken awful angles and have not been reliable in run support. These issues are all easily fixable with time, coaching and film review.

How is it typical when last year’s stats were so much better ? Sad how the apologists bend logic in the most bizarre ways to defend the guy. Last year’s defense played better than this year’s defense has so far, period. Hopefully the D will improve but so far it’s been atypical.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

How is it typical when last year’s stats were so much better ? Sad how the apologists bend logic in the most bizarre ways to defend the guy. Last year’s defense played better than this year’s defense has so far, period. Hopefully the D will improve but so far it’s been atypical.

I don’t disagree with anything you said here.

The good news for us though is that despite our glaring big picture issues, when all was said and done - one single play made a difference between a convincing win and a nail biter vs Washington. Now I get that they made lots of other unforced errors that led to them being down 21-10 facing 4th and 2 from their own 46. I also get that it’s disappointing that we can’t seem to take QBs down when we get pressure on them. All that said - Boston made an amazing play tipping an off balance pass from Rogers to himself right before falling out of bounds to keep that drive alive. But think about it. All said and done - if that ball falls incomplete - we now have the ball already in Washington territory with under 3 minutes to play and the score is still 21-10. In that situation, we’d be in 4 down territory for sure (I don’t see us risking punt block just to push them back 20 yards) and with a comfortable 2 score lead - Washington couldn’t have put 10 in the box because they would’ve had to respect the possibility of a safe pass. Totally different game.

 

[gef21]

I would love to see the mean vs the average. Is it were giving up 2-3 big play a game, and then playing good defense the rest, or is it really that YPC.

The Mean is 4 ypc but my post below explains more.

 

[gef21]

Answered my own question:

Washington runs
0,0,01,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3,4,4,4,5,6,9,10,11,11,11,11,13,14,35,39

3/28 are explosive defensive plays 11%
10/28 are good run stops 36%
6/28 are bad run stops 21%
9/28 are explosive opponent plays 32%

53% of runs lean in the favor of the offense on my grading.

 

[cubuffsdoug]

One thing that remains true on this board is if someone decides something is an issue, they don't let it go. Next, others join in with the same message and even if there is a reason for the situation or change for the better, those individuals will continue to promote the original narrative because that's what they believe no matter what.

 

[winfield102]

VT had a great 1st rushing TD to the right. As soon as it was snapped, you could tell that we were in trouble. I wasn't sure if the one TD where they ran outside left was just flipped.

For Washington, Coleman is not afraid to bounce outside.

I've always felt the GS rush defense was susceptible to outside runs. We just seem overwhelm the OL within the tackle box.

 

[gef21]

VT had a great 1st rushing TD to the right. As soon as it was snapped, you could tell that we were in trouble. I wasn't sure if the one TD where they ran outside left was just flipped.

For Washington, Coleman is not afraid to bounce outside.

I've always felt the GS rush defense was susceptible to outside runs. We just seem overwhelm the OL within the tackle box.

The VT TDs were both a clear scheme issue. I am not sure if VT had shown that formation/play before. Open set trips bunch to with a jet sweep motion and a pulling linemen. Hopefully that issue has been fixed against that formation.

 

[gef21]

VT Game
-2,-1,-1,0,0,0,2,2,2,2,2,3,3,4,5,5,5,9,9,11,12,14,15,23,31,33

6/26 Explosive defensive plays 23%
7/26 Good Run Stops 27%
6/26 bad run stops 23%
7/26 explosive opponent plays 27%

50% for favorable plays but two games in a row we give up more explosive plays in the run game than we made.

 

[gef21]

Akron
-4,-2,0,1,1,1,3,3,3,4,4,5,5,5,6,7,8,9,11,12,12,16,73
3/23 Explosive Defensive plays 13%
6/23 Good Run Stops 26%
9/23 bad run stops 39%
5/23 Explosive opponent plays 21%

60% offensive favorable run plays. 3 games in a row we give up more explosive plays than we make in the run game defensively.

 

[LotusAggressor]

VT had a great 1st rushing TD to the right. As soon as it was snapped, you could tell that we were in trouble. I wasn't sure if the one TD where they ran outside left was just flipped.

For Washington, Coleman is not afraid to bounce outside.

I've always felt the GS rush defense was susceptible to outside runs. We just seem overwhelm the OL within the tackle box.

This is true. It's also susceptible to cutbacks and misdirection.

 

[gef21]

Howard
-2,-2,-2,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,,1,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,3,3,4,5,6,6,6,6,6,7,8,11,11,16,16,16,18

10/35 explosive defensive plays 28.5%
10/35 good run stops 28.5%
9/35 bad run stops 26%
6/35 explosive opponent plays 17%

57% positive defensive plays. Only game we had more positive defensive plays and more explosive plays in the run game.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

I would love to see the mean vs the average. Is it were giving up 2-3 big play a game, and then playing good defense the rest, or is it really that YPC.

We’re not playing good D outside of the red zone. No question on that.

 

[gef21]

We’re not playing good D outside of the red zone. No question on that.

We have given up 27 explosive run plays in 4 games as compared to making 22 explosive plays in the defensive run game.

 

[RUbacker]

The defense misses Deion Jennings. He was a heck of a football player.

i think they miss mo toure

 

[RUbacker]

We’re not playing good D outside of the red zone. No question on that.

the million dollar question is do we improve? or is this who we are on D the rest of the year? i say we improve but not sure by how much.

 

[gef21]

i think they miss mo toure

Well we are missing both. Mo was explosive. Jennings (for all the issues he had sideline to sideline) was awesome in the triangle especially at shedding blocks and staying in his gap.

 

[gef21]

the million dollar question is do we improve? or is this who we are on D the rest of the year? i say we improve but not sure by how much.

Statistically speaking we only need to improve on 5-8% of run plays to be a significantly improved defense.

 

[Rutgers Chris]

Statistically speaking we only need to improve on 5-8% of run plays to be a significantly improved defense.

I’d wonder how many of those plays involved missed tackles. Clean that up and we may be well on our way to those numbers

 

[gef21]

I’d wonder how many of those plays involved missed tackles. Clean that up and we may be well on our way to those numbers

Again a 5-8% improvement on plays and this is a very significant different group of stats. I would assume the majority of the explosive plays are a missed tackle or a missed assignment.

 

[Blitz8RUCrazy]

I think the problem is our LBs. they need to be faster and much more sound when tackling and taking pursuit angles

 

[cubuffsdoug]

I think the problem is our LBs. they need to be faster and much more sound when tackling and taking pursuit angles

I don't think they need to be faster. They need to be sound in their assignments. That seems to be the main issue. Guys are missing their gap fits and over running plays. Also, the young DB, such as Sanders, Williams, and Mascoe are inexperienced and making mistakes that compound the ones made by the LB.

 

[RU#1fan]

the million dollar question is do we improve? or is this who we are on D the rest of the year? i say we improve but not sure by how much.

We have to improve on D assignments and tackling or the Team will not continue the upward success we all had hoped for this year { 8 wins or more).