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ATHENS - Through the first four games of the season, it’s clear the Georgia Bulldogs have a major issue on defense.
It’s their inability to get to the quarterback.
After Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar carved up the Dawgs for 371 yards and four touchdowns, Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson did something similar on Saturday night.
Simpson got plenty of protection from his offensive line and it allowed him to make big plays with his arm. Especially on 3rd down. Leading the Crimson Tide to victory, Simpson threw for 276 yards and two touchdowns against Kirby Smart’s defense.
Georgia’s inability to create havoc in the backfield is a big reason why both quarterbacks had a big day against them. It’s hard to defend the pass when the quarterback has all day to throw, and right now, that’s what’s happening.
To their credit, the Georgia defense did make their adjustments in the second half against Alabama, but the point remains the same.
There’s no game-changing defender on Georgia’s roster. There’s no dominant pass-rusher. There’s no Jarvis Jones, Azeez Ojulari, Nolan Smith, or Jalon Walker.
It’s a major issue right now, but for some reason, Kirby Smart doesn’t think so.
“You know what, we executed at a high level”, Smart said. “We did not have a lack of execution on third down. We had one where we checked, and they checked, and we checked, and they checked, and we didn't quite get lined up right. But it was a front issue, not a coverage issue. So no, there wasn't a lack of execution. There was really good execution and a high level quarterback play. Give him a lot of credit, shake his hand, say he did a great job. The ball came out before some of our rush got there. One time we didn't have our rush lanes right and the quarterback took off the first third down of the game. You can't let them do that. You have to execute better in those situations. So we have to find ways to affect the quarterback, but we had some in there that we executed, and they out-executed.”
No, Kirby. The execution isn’t there. If it was, there would be more results.
There’s no “alpha” pass-rusher. Nobody that scares the opponent. Nobody who can consistently make plays on 3rd down.
Chris Cole currently leads the team with three sacks. While he’s been far from perfect, he’s been a fine player.
But Georgia needs more. Quarterbacks don’t fear Georgia’s front seven like they used to. That’s a problem.
Kirby can brush it off all he wants, but deep down he knows he’s got issues and inconsistency there. They need an improved pass-rush and they need to find it quickly. He needs guys who can force turnovers and guys who can consistently attack the quarterback.
Right now, it’s not out there. This isn’t your typical Georgia defense. Kirby Smart can cover for them all he wants, and his staff does a great job of making adjustments, but overall, they’re not as talented and they’re not as efficient.
Is this a problem that can be fixed? We need to find out soon...
