Florida's Pass Rush Blew Expectations Out of the Water in 2019

The Gators didn't know what they had in their pass rush entering 2019. Exiting the year, Florida has one of the best in the nation.

Douglas DeFelice-USA TODAY Sports

No one expected the Florida Gators to own one of the most threatening pass rushing units in the nation a year following Jachai Polite's early departure for the NFL. 

When a team loses 11 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss from one player, let alone contributions from linebacker Vosean Joseph, defensive back Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, and defensive end Cece Jefferson who combined for eight sacks and 24 tackles for loss before departing from Florida, it's hard to expect that same team to be one of the most disruptive pass rushing teams in the nation a year later.

In that situation, a team would typically be forced to turn to graduate transfers, to play freshmen and under-developed players onto the field early, and to get creative within their play-calling to scheme pressure.

The Gators did all three and made Polite and Co.'s efforts in 2018 look pedestrian along the way.

Florida finished the 2019 regular season with 46 sacks, tied for fourth in the nation. The Gators also stand at 11th in tackles for loss with 97, and a whopping 220 quarterback pressures - averaging over 18 per game on opposing signal-callers, per Pro Football Focus.

No one saw Florida emerging as one of college football's most disruptive, QB-wrecking teams given what the Gators lost after the 2018 season, given the uncertainty as to what the pass rush would look like. 

The Gators returned three starters on the defensive line in defensive end Jabari Zuniga and tackles Adam Shuler and Kyree Campbell. Zuniga entered 2019 expected to lead Florida's pass rush after 6.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss last year, but Shuler and Campbell's production far from matched that as they only compiled three sacks and seven tackles for loss as a duo.

After that, Florida handed the keys to their BUCK pass-rushing position to Louisville graduate transfer Jonathan Greenard, who had traits to succeed as an edge rusher on tape from his time with the Cardinals, but fresh off of a broken wrist and owning only one year of eligibility, expectations for Greenard were uncertain. Everyone knew he was only going to be a band-aid for the 2019 season while defensive coordinator Todd Grantham and Co. would build the future of the pass rush through recruiting.

But Greenard wasn't the Spongebob band-aid you get at the doctor's office after a flu shot. Greenard was as strong of an adhesive for Florida's pass rush as it gets, piling together nine sacks, 15 tackles for loss, 41 quarterback pressures, three batted passes, two forced fumbles, and an interception - all at the same position Polite played.

And Greenard's command for attention from opposing offensive lines opened up many other opportunities for Florida to put pressure on the quarterback. His contributions opened up opportunities for players off of the opposite edge, such as Zuniga when he was healthy, Jeremiah Moon, Zachary Carter, and freshmen ends Mohamoud Diabate and Khris Bogle to combine for 16 sacks, 18.5 tackles for loss, and 75 pressures.

That's absurd production coming off of the edge. And we aren't done yet.

Shuler and Campbell posted similar production to 2018, with 3.5 sacks, eight tackles for loss, and 26 pressures between the two of them, never padding the box score yet still finding ways to open up opportunities for other players.

Grantham would also utilize defenders from all over the field in the pass rush on occasion, and found much success. Linebacker James Houston IV was Florida's most effective blitzing linebacker, putting pressure on the quarterback 12 times on 14 pass rushing snaps and putting together 3.5 sacks and five tackles for loss along the way - as a rotating player.

Ventrell Miller, another linebacker who often rotated at the MONEY weak-side linebacker position, posted 11 pressures, 2.5 sacks, and five tackles for loss on 21 blitzes. 

Even the secondary put together a good year in the pass rush. Cornerbacks Trey Dean III and C.J. Henderson, as well as safety Brad Stewart, put together 3.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss too. As a unit, secondary members combined for yet another 16 pressures, as Dean lead the way with five at the STAR nickel cornerback position.

Entering 2019, expectations were all over the place considering the turnover within Florida's pass rush and the lack of proof that the team could be consistently dominant. When you reflect upon the season now, the work the unit did considering the situation entering the year is jaw-dropping.