PFF grades for every Georgia Tech defensive player

Georgia Tech’s defense came into yesterday’s game against Florida State with a lot of questions, but they put in a tremendous performance. After finishing as one of the worst defenses in the country a year ago, Georgia Tech was able to hold Florida State under 300 total yards and limited their rushing attack to just 3.2 yards per carry. The Seminoles came into the game with one of the biggest and most experienced offensive lines in the country, but they couldn’t get away with it against Georgia Tech like many predicted.

The adjustments the defensive team made after the first drive of the game cannot be understated. Florida State had an easy drive to start the game and scored quickly with their running game, but new defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci made adjustments and Florida State couldn’t do much the rest of the game. The Yellow Jackets were sending all kinds of blitzes to make Seminoles quarterback DJ Uiagalelei uncomfortable and Georgia Tech’s tackling improved after the first drive. It was a great show to watch if you’re a Georgia Tech fan and if the defense can continue to improve, watch out.

So how did PFF (Pro Football Focus) grade Georgia Tech’s defensive players? Here are each defensive player’s grades with their snap count in parentheses.

1. LB EJ Lightsey – 72.9 (5)

2. DE Sylvain Yondjouen- 67.4 (28)

3. DE Josh Robinson – 67.3 (26)

4. DT Jordan van den Bert- 66.9 (21)

5. Manager Makius Scott – 66.7 (37)

6. CB Ahmari Harvey – 65.6 (56)

7. DB Rodney Shelley – 64.7 (46)

8. CB Warren Burrell-64.1 (40)

9. LB Kyle Efford – 63.6 (56)

10. DT Jason Moore – 63.4 (7)

11. Defensive back Clayton Powell-Lee-62.4 (60)

12. DT Thomas Gore-61.6 (14)

13. DB Omar Daniels – 61.0 (38)

14. DE Romello Height- 59.7 (39)

15. FROM Kevin Harris- 57.7 (29)

16. LB Trenilyas Tatum- 56.4 (54)

17. DB Zachary Tobe-55.6 (9)

18. DT Zeek Biggers – 55.2 (39)

19. DB Taye Seymore- 52.4 (21)

20. DB LaMiles Brooks- 52.3 (39)

21. LB Tah’j Butler-52.1 (7)