What Happened To The Secondary?

A question that I didn’t think coaches and fans would be searching for answers at mid-season still is: What is wrong with the Secondary? Simple answer, if I knew I would be a Defensive Coordinator somewhere.  The second question would be, Did I see the secondary struggling this bad? And that answer is, NO!

The secondary has been one of the weak spots on PITT’s defense over the past few seasons and with the exceptions of Darrelle Revis and K’Waun Williams, the defense really has not had a shutdown corner who deterred opposing Quarterbacks.

One reason is over the past few seasons, coaches tried to pass off Lafayette Pitts as a shutdown corner, but he still gave up too many big plays for anyone’s liking.  Now don’t get me wrong he was a solid defensive back, but he wasn’t that shutdown guy who made opposing Quarterbacks question whether or not they should throw it in that direction.

But, as last season progressed, I liked what I saw from the Secondary and had some confidence that it would continue to improve though out the off-season. Well, through 6 games, that confidence has diminished and I like everyone else am looking for answers.

Being the top recruit and leader of this secondary, Jordan Whitehead has lived up to expectations so far and still has room for improvement as he continues to grow as a football player.  Last season, Whitehead tallied 110 tackles, 7 for loss and 1 Interception.  So far this season, he has 37 tackles and 1.5 for loss.  The numbers so far this season may not look impressive, but when I watch the games whether from the stands or on TV, the secondary just looks more relaxed with Whitehead on the field.  But with Whitehead playing some offense, and I want to see him be used on offense, you need to have faith that your secondary can get it done when he is on the sideline getting a break.

Now we take a look at the Defensive Backs who can give coaches and fans that faith that there will be no drop off when Whitehead is on the sidelines.  First, is Junior Avonte Maddox who broke into the starting lineup last season and improved each game finishing with 75 tackles, 3 interceptions and 1 touchdown.  Throughout the first 5 games this season it is safe to say that he has struggled at times.  Maddox looked good against Villanova and Penn State, but struggled late in the games on the road at Oklahoma St and North Carolina. He looked like a top corner again against Marshall and looked good against Georgia Tech before leaving the game early with what looked like an arm injury from the stands.  Hopefully Maddox can return to the field if not this weekend against Virginia, but the next game against Virginia Tech.  Maddox has shown the ability to be a Top 2 defensive back the rest of this season and especially his senior season next year, but just needs to be a little more consistent.

Redshirt Senior Ryan Lewis has stepped into the #2 Defensive Back position through the first 6 games and has looked a little over-matched at times and I don’t want to put all of that on him, I just think he is playing out of position.  Lewis made the big play to ice the game against Penn State, but those type of plays have been few and far between in the other 5 games this season.  In my opinion, Lewis should be used as a #3 DB in Nickel, Dime and Quarter Defensive packages. When you watch Lewis on the field and with his body type, covering the slot receiver or tight end’s would be perfect for him.  Lewis’ career stats (including this season) at PITT include 63 tackles and 1 interception.

But, with Freshman Damar Hamlin being “Break glass in case of emergency” this season because the coaches don’t want to burn his redshirt, and I agree with this by the way. Lewis will have to play as one of the top 2 defensive backs until Avonte Maddox is healthy enough to return to the field.

And I say until Maddox is healthy enough to return the field, if he’s out for any extended period of time, because I would like to see Redshirt Freshman Dane Jackson get a shot at getting more playing time the rest of this season.  Jackson entered the game after Maddox got hurt against Georgia Tech and as expected the Yellow Jackets took shots to his side of the field and he did not look over-matched.

When everyone in this secondary is healthy this season, the strongest Secondary I believe that Defensive Coordinator Josh Conklin and Head Coach Pat Narduzzi can put out there would look like this:

DB #1: Avonte Maddox

DB #2: Dane Jackson

DB #3: Ryan Lewis 

DB #4: Dennis Briggs

SS: Jordan Whitehead/Terrish Webb

FS: Reggie Mitchell/Terrish Webb

And you may of noticed, I did leave Damar Hamlin off this list because with Lewis being a Senior and Maddox a Junior, if you can survive this season with a Hamlin redshirt, you make it happen.  Because next season your starting defensive backs will be Maddox and Hamlin and then in two seasons if all works out your starting defensive backs will be Hamlin and Jackson. This is all subject to change obviously with recruiting and injuries.

If you remember what I said about the Running Backs  in one of my previous articles about that position being set for the foreseeable future, I have a completely different feeling about the secondary.  This secondary is a work in progress the rest of the season.  As longs as the defensive line and linebackers continue to put pressure on opponents, we won’t notice any struggles in the Secondary. But, if those two parts of the defense struggle for any amount of time in a game, we will notice struggles in the Secondary as they figure out the right combination.

Virginia is a pass happy offense and will be another test for the PITT Secondary from the Opening Kickoff this weekend.