Defensive Grades From NC State's Week 3 Win

How PFF viewed the NC State defense against Wake Forest

Defensive Line/Pass Rushers

• Sophomore defensive tackle/end Isaiah Shirley - 94.4
• Senior defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland - 71.7
• Redshirt freshman defensive end Chase Bond - 65.3
• Senior JACK backer Cian Slone - 64.5
• Senior defensive tackle Chazz Wallace - 61.7
• Senior defensive end Travali Price - 61.4
• Senior JACK backer Tra Thomas - 60.9
• Senior defensive end Sabastian Harsh. - 44.9

After the slow start, the defensive line shut down Wake Forest quarterback Robby Ashford and running back Demond Claiborne. Because of his pick-six, Shirley earned the highest grade of his career with the Wolfpack.

The defensive tackles performed well against the run, with Cleveland posting a 69.1 run defense score. Price recorded his first sack of the season. Harsh's off night and ejection helped him earn his worst grade of the season. Slone improved as the game went on, finishing with three tackles, including a tackle for loss.

Secondary

• Redshirt freshman safety Ronnie Royal III - 79.8
• Junior nickel Jackson Vick - 69.2
• Redshirt freshman nickel Asaad Brown Jr. - 68.7
• Sophomore cornerback Brian Nelson II - 65.1
• Senior cornerback Devon Marshall - 63.3
• Senior cornerback Jamel Johnson - 61.9
• Senior safety JJ Johnson - 58.4
• Redshirt freshman safety Brody Barnhardt - 53.5

Royal's fourth-quarter interception helped him earn the best grade of his young career. The safety allowed just one reception for five yards and finished with a 79.9 coverage grade, the best on the Wolfpack.

Royal also added four total tackles. Asaad Brown played 10 snaps in a fill-in role with Jaren Sensabaugh out due to injury. Barnhardt has seen an increased role in the last two games, but his scores haven't been great so far. The redshirt freshman is still getting a feel for the position and finished with seven total tackles, the second-most on the defense.

Linebackers

• Junior linebacker Kenny Soares Jr. - 71.1
• Senior linebacker Sean Brown - 68.9
• Senior linebacker Caden Fordham - 59.8

The up-and-down start for the Wolfpack linebackers continued in the third game of the season. Brown improved massively in the second half and bumped his pass coverage score to 79.7, but his work against the run continued to be a problem, finishing with a 44.4 run defense score. Soares proved himself to be a valuable pass rusher in the eyes of PFF, finishing with a team 78.0 pass rush score. Fordham's early struggles continued, earning a second straight sub-60 grade. With Harsh suspended for the first half of the Duke game, Soares will likely get more reps against the Blue Devils.

After a disastrous performance against the run in the win over Virginia, the defense performed better against a significantly more dangerous running back in Demond Claiborne. Some of the trends, particularly Fordham's overall struggles and Brown's difficulties stopping the run are worth monitoring in the coming weeks, especially with Soares starting to come into his own alongside that duo.