Michigan Football Defensive Grades Heading Into November Finals

As Michigan football has reached the 3/4 point in the 2019 season, we look at how the defense is grading out. Who gets an A? And which position group has been the Wolverines' best this season?

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We did our offensive grades earlier in the week with RB Hassan Haskins, LT Jon Runyan Jr., RB Zach Charbonnet and WR Nico Collins earning the highest marks. 

Defensive Line: A- (was B+)

Aidan Hutchinson: A (was A)

Kwity Paye: A (was A-)

Michael Dwumfour: B+ (was B+)

Mike Danna: A- (was B+)

Carlo Kemp: B+ (was B)

The line alone is not responsible for the Wolverines' success against the run, but it establishes the line of scrimmage, and that is a battle Michigan won in each of its past three games - opponents averaged 2.6 yards per rush while U-M has recorded eight sacks in those contests (at least two in each game).  

We cannot ignore the Wisconsin game - and why we can't hand out an 'A' - but this unit (and the entire defense as you will see) has been outstanding in eight of nine games this year. 

The defense's biggest test awaits and like last year, two games can have a dramatic impact on the final grade, but there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the rise of the line and the defense.  

What's incredible about this group is how consistent it has been without much depth. A hallmark of a Don Brown defense has been strength in numbers, with Michigan using seven, eight and nine defensive linemen with regularity from 2016-18. This year, just the five as tackles Donovan Jeter (five snaps the past three games) and Ben Mason (zero snaps) have faded into oblivion and end Luiji Villain has played only a few snaps (20 in the last three games out of 182 possible plays). 

Hutchinson has remained our Stock Report No. 1 player for most of the season, and for good reason - he has made 16 "impact" plays this season (sacks, tackles for loss, pass breakups and either forced fumbles or fumble recoveries). 

Paye leads the team in tackles for loss (10.0) and is second in sacks (5.5), Danna is coming off his best game and has been an ascending player for the Wolverines. 

Kemp and Dwumfour have only three combined stops behind the line of scrimmage but this line took off when Dwumfour returned from injury in Week 4, and Kemp has been a stalwart both against the run and creating opportunities for his teammates on the pass rush. 

Linebacker: A (was B+)

Cam McGrone: A (was A)

Josh Uche: A- (was B+)

Jordan Glasgow: A (was A-)

Khaleke Hudson: A- (was B)

One has to wonder what this linebacker unit would have looked like had McGrone been inserted into the lineup earlier, for say, the trip to Madison. Since his emergence (only made possible by an injury to Josh Ross), the linebackers have thrived, each one fitting into a proper place that best utilizes their skill set. That's what a galvanizing force can do.

Michigan hockey coach Red Berenson used to say all the time that when your best players are your best players, second-line guys and third-line guys can each play their role, and when everyone plays the role they are capable of, a team will reach its maximum potential. 

That is what McGrone has meant to this position group - Uche can do what he does best (rush the passer, a team-leading 7.5 sacks), Glasgow can be the Swiss-army knife that does a little bit of everything, and Hudson can be that steady, calming influence that is always around the ball without having to create constant chaos (a team-leading 77 tackles but just three TFL). 

That's McGrone, who has seven TFL in the last five games, and has the sideline to sideline speed that has made it impossible for offenses to outflank Michigan and beat the Wolverines on the edge. 

Cornerback: A- (was B)

Lavert Hill: A (was A-)

Ambry Thomas: A- (was A-)

Vincent Gray: B+ (was B)

I challenge you to find a game where Michigan's cornerbacks were repeatedly beaten and looked overwhelmed in coverage. Wisconsin, Penn State and Notre Dame all had a play or two on the outside, but go back and watch the film and in each case, it was a perfectly-thrown ball and the coverage was actually damn good. 

Hill will move on after this season, but Thomas looks ready to be the No. 1 cornerback and Gray is primed for a bigger role. All three have been physical in run support and are winning their one-on-one battles against receivers. 

What the unit is missing are game-changing plays - the three corners have combined for just four interceptions in nine games, and none in the past three. Part of that is the way that Michigan plays (though U-M uses zone more often, it is still primarily a man-to-man defense) and part of it is the fact that quarterbacks don't often attack the three, but if we're nitpicking, that's something the Wolverines could be better at. 

Safeties: A- (was A-)

Josh Metellus: A (was A)

Brad Hawkins: A- (was B+)

Daxton Hill: A- (was A)

Michigan ranks fifth nationally in pass defense (153.6 yards allowed per game), 18th in pass efficiency defense (112.65 rating), 14th in yards per attempt (5.9) and 36th in completion percentage (56.7).

U-M also ranks 13th in long scrimmage plays allowed (20 yards or more) with just 25 in nine games, including 19 through the air. 

Of course, what everyone will remember are the two long touchdown throws to Penn State wide receiver KJ Hamler in a 28-21 loss at Penn State. Like the Wisconsin game, you can't just ignore those plays in assessing the grade of the safeties. But, is it Metellus' and Hawkins' fault or is it the coaching, asking a pair of safeties to defend the Big Ten's fastest and most dangerous receiver in the slot? Almost every former player I've talked to argues it's the latter. 

With that in mind, what grade would you hand out? The two starters have been excellent as centerfielders, they're strong against the run, are sure tacklers overall (Hawkins has 50 tackles, Metellus has 47 stops), have kept big plays at a minimum and are strong at the line of scrimmage. Metellus has a pair of interceptions, Hawkins had one at Notre Dame the zebras took away for reasons we still don't understand (the bogus pass interference on Hudson). 

These guys have been really, really good. And finally, after years of inconsistency at the position, we're seeing a path in which the Maize and Blue will just reload every year, like they have done at cornerback. 

Why? Because Hill is waiting in the wings. His limited snaps the past three weeks are a puzzler (he's played 49 of 182 plays), and his impact has diminished because of it - three total tackles, one pass breakup, two fumble recoveries (one on special teams) - but Hill's talent is still undeniable, and he figures to be a significant factor in THE Game.