Tennessee football dropped its second game of the season on Saturday afternoon, blowing a 13-point halftime lead and falling to Alabama 34-20. The loss pushes the Vols to 5-2 (2-2 SEC) on the season.
Each week, we’ll share how the Vols graded out according to Pro Football Focus grades.
If you need a reminder on how Pro Football Focus works, read the opening of the Virginia grades.
Let’s see how the Vols graded out.
Elite grade = 90-100, All-Conference = 85-89, Starter = 70-84, Backup = 60-69, Replaceable = 60 >
Offensive Grades (minimum 20 plays — 25% of offensive plays)
QB Joe Milton III — 74.3 (81 plays)
WR Squirrel White — 73.0 (73 plays)
LG Ollie Lane — 71.5 (81 plays)
RG Javontez Spraggins — 67.6 (81 plays)
RB Dylan Sampson — 65.7 (28 plays)
RT Gerald Mincey — 65.1 (53 plays)
C Cooper Mays — 62.0 (81 plays)
WR Ramel Keyton — 61.4 (81 plays)
LT John Campbell Jr. — 60.1 (81 plays)
RB Jaylen Wright — 56.2 (33 plays)
TE McCallan Castles — 55.7 (39 plays)
RB Jabari Small — 53.0 (20 plays)
RT Dayne Davis — 52.2 (28 plays)
WR Chas Nimrod — 51.7 (49 plays)
WR Kaleb Webb — 50.1 (32 plays)
TE Jacob Warren — 42.6 (42 plays)
Joe Milton III played his best game of the season if not the best game of his career. Obviously, it was front half loaded like anything Tennessee did well against Alabama but the quarterback was more accurate in the intermediate than he has been all season. Milton was also better at extending plays and making things happen with his legs.
If you told me that Tennessee’s three running backs would combine for just 74 rushing yards I would have told you the Vols’ offense would have been dreadful. Tennessee never quite got its running game going in this one and while that’s a team effort it didn’t feel like a strong day for any of the Vols’ running backs but particularly not Jaylen Wright.
Lastly, the three receivers Tennessee is using to replace Bru McCoy graded out as three of its four worst offensive players. Dont’e Thornton earned a dreadful 40.7 grade on eight plays. The Vols seemingly don’t have any answers at the third receiver spot right now.
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Defensive Grades (minimum of 16 plays — 25% of defensive plays)
LEO Josh Josephs — 84.0 (16 plays)
LB Aaron Beasley — 79.2 (58 plays)
LEO James Pearce Jr. — 78.4 (33 plays)
S Jaylen McCollough — 70.3 (64 plays)
STAR Tamarion McDonald — 68.2 (64 plays)
CB Kamal Hadden — 66.7 (30 plays)
CB Gabe Jeudy-Lally — 64.4 (60 plays)
DT Kurott Garland — 63.8 (18 plays)
CB Doneiko Slaughter — 62.5 (21 plays)
S Wesley Walker — 60.3 (63 plays)
DE Tyler Baron — 58.4 (40 plays)
CB Brandon Turnage — 58.4 (19 plays)
LEO Roman Harrison — 50.7 (27 plays)
LB Elijah Herring — 49.8 (54 plays)
DE Dominic Bailey — 49.3 (25 plays)
DT Omari Thomas — 48.8 (34 plays)
DT Bryson Eason — 47.6 (25 plays)
This felt like one of the first games this season where Tennessee really missed Keenan Pili. Aaron Beasley was fantastic at inside linebacker but the underclassmen replacing Pili struggled.
As Alabama asserted its will in the run game in the second half, it wasn’t surprising to see the interior of Tennessee’s defensive line grade out poorly. Felt like it was that group’s worst game of the season.
I’ll end on a positive note for Tennessee’s defense. James Pearce Jr. had another strong game and Josh Josephs played really well. That sophomore duo is fun to watch and will continue to be effective for the Vols.
One Response
It gets predictable when you run the same dive play 3 times in a row every time you get in the red zone.