Three Ways the Oregon Defense Can Grow in 2022

The end of the offseason is almost here, which means we'll have new things to talk about, but for now we continue to look ahead to next season.

Today I want to take a look at how Oregon's defense can grow in 2022 after up-and-down showings throughout last season. Keep in mind that Kayvon Thibodeaux, Mykael Wright, Verone McKinley III, DJ James, Dru Mathis, Jayson Jones, Kristian Williams and Nate Heaukulani are all no longer with the team.

Here are three ways I think the Ducks can grow on defense in 2022.

1. Develop a consistent pass rush

Now this one is much easier said that done, and it's not going to be easy to replace first round NFL Draft selection Kayvon Thibdoeaux. Even when the Ducks had Thibodeaux, if he wasn't able to generate pressure the defense fell flat and oftentimes lacked explosion off the line of scrimmage.

Without No. 5 the Ducks still have a lot of talented edge rushers and defensive linemen that should should be able to string together a better showing week-to-week getting after the quarterback.

Sacks are going to be a key metric to measure success, but I'd also like to see more of the offensive line getting driven back and in the direction of the quarterback. Even if the defense can't get home as often as it wants to, just make the quarterback uncomfortable and make it difficult to operate.

DJ Johnson and Bradyn Swinson look like the biggest candidates to emerge as pass rushers for Dan Lanning and Tosh Lupoi's defense, but they'll need to work in tandem with the defensive line in the process. Brandon Dorlus and Keyon Ware-Hudson return, with Sam Taimani and Jordon Riley coming in from the portal to beef up the interior.

2. Improved third-down defense

This is another difficult ask, as there's no one solution that helps improve third-down defense. It's going to have to be a combination of things like situational awareness, an improved pass rush, film study, better tackling and sometimes just a bit of luck.

Third-down defense hasn't been a strength for this team in recent seasons, as the Ducks often get their opponents in difficult third-down situations, only to fall apart and spoil their opportunity to get off the field.

Intentional or not, the bend-don't break mentality always seemed to rear its head on third down, and that's when you need to do yourself a favor and slam the door by forcing a punt or at least limiting the damage with a field goal.

Fans are hoping Tosh Lupoi's early stress on generating turnovers will manifest itself on the field, as the Ducks started the year generating turnovers at a high clip before losing some steam in the back half of the season.

3. Utilize versatility as much as possible

This is something I'm really excited to see from this new staff.

This defense has a lot of versatility whether you're looking at DJ Johnson playing both sides of the ball last season, Trikweze Bridges converting from safety to cornerback, or Jeffrey Bassa coming down from the secondary to become one of the defense's greatest success stories at linebacker.

It seemed that Demetrice Martin was taking an experimental approach with the secondary back in the spring, and having tall, lengthy playmakers like Bridges as well as Bryan Addison should give the Ducks plenty of chances to give opponents unique looks. Khamari Terrell, Jahlil Florence and Jalil Tucker provide a major speed boost for the secondary and we could see them getting involved on defense and special teams in their debut college seasons.

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