Replace and Reload: Notre Dame Ends Have Big Shoes To Fill

One of the biggest question marks for the Notre Dame defense heading into the 2023 season was the defensive end position. Now, just five months later, defensive end is once again one of the bigger question marks, for the completely different reasons.

The question mark turned into a strength in 2023, and now the Irish will need to find answers at what is a very important position in the defense. Notre Dame will need to find answers at defensive end if the Irish defense is going to once again be one of the nation's best, which is certainly was this past season.

WHAT WAS LOST

Landing former Ohio State edge Javontae Jean-Baptiste was one of the biggest additions of the last offseason for the Irish, although it might not have seemed that way when he first picked the Irish. A career backup for the Buckeyes, Jean-Baptiste quickly emerged as one of Notre Dame's best defensive players in 2023.

The New Jersey native led the Notre Dame defense with 10.5 tackles for loss and five sacks, and the was second on the defense with 37 quarterback pressures (Pro Football Focus). Jean-Baptiste was expected to provide a pass rush boost, and he certainly did that, but what made him such an impactful player was that he also emerged as a strong run defender.

His backup - NaNa Osafo-Mensah - did a lot of the dirty work for the defensive line. Osafo-Mensah provided good leadership, but also chipped in with 5.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.

That means the defensive end rotation combined for 69 tackles, 16 tackles for loss and eight sacks. It won't be easy to replace the leadership and production that Notre Dame had at defensive end, but that's what they'll be tasked with doing.

BURNHAM GETS A SHOT

Talented edge Josh Burnham spent most of the bowl prep and the bowl game playing the defensive end position after spending his sophomore season playing Vyper. He will get his chance to become a regular, if not the starter, at defensive end heading into his junior season.

Burnham is still learning to play on the edge after spending his high school career playing quarterback and linebacker. The 2023 season was his first in the rotation, and Burnham showed loads of promise while racking up 18 tackles, four tackles for loss and a sack. 

He is still learning the intricacies of playing on the edge, but there's no disputing his combination of length and athleticism. Burnham has all the potential to develop into a disruptive edge player, but he'll need to develop the finer points of line play.

The role he'll have next season remains to be seen. At the very least he'll be a key rotation player at defensive end like he was at Vyper this past season. A breakout offseason from Burnham could thrust him into a more prominent role, giving the Michigan native an opportunity to become a breakout star for the Irish defense. One capable of replacing the production the defense lost with Jean-Baptiste departing.

OBEN ADDS IMPACT SKILL

One of the big additions of the current portal session was former Duke edge R.J. Oben, who brings 67 career tackles, 20 career tackles for loss, 14.5 career sacks and five career forced fumbles to the Irish defense. Oben has had at least 4.5 sacks in each of the last three seasons for the Blue Devils.

Oben was a quality pass rusher throughout his Duke career, and his career production coming to Notre Dame was far greater than what Jean-Baptiste had at Ohio State before arriving (10 TFL, 8 sacks). If Oben can make a similar jump with the Irish he'll also have a chance to fill the big shoes that Jean-Baptiste left behind.

At the very least I expect Oben to add pass rush production to the defensive end position. The 6-4, 260-pound veteran has a quality pass rush repertoire to go with impressive length and burst. At Notre Dame he'll be tasked with providing more run game production than he did at Duke, and that will ultimately determine how impactful he'll be with the Irish.

There's a chance that is Oben is as good as advertised and Burnham has a breakout season the Irish could actually be better at defensive end in 2024. If that happens the Irish defense will be exceptionally good. If this duo doesn't have the strong offseason I anticipate the drop in production that could follow could be a concern.

BREAKOUT POTENTIAL

There are plenty of young and talented players that are hoping to make a splash at defensive end this offseason. If at least one can emerge the depth at defensive end will be quite strong, and those young players will push the older and more experienced weapons.

Rising junior Tyson Ford is a player to keep an eye on this offseason. It's an important period of time for Ford, a former Top 100 recruit that has a lot of tools, but he hasn't been able to put it all together yet. A strong offseason from Ford could dramatically change the outlook for the defensive line, and it could help him start tapping into his potential. Classmate Aiden Gobaira is another talented player that could provide quality depth if he can recover well from the knee injury that cost him the 2023 season.

Rising sophomore Brenan Vernon is a physically gifted player that is still learning the nuances of the game, but he has an impressive size/power/athleticism profile. If he stays on the edge he could prove to be a stout run defender for the Irish defense.

Although I think the plan right now is to give him a shot at Vyper, there's also a chance that rising sophomore Boubacar Traore could see some time at defensive end. He's a unique player with loads of talent, and he had the highest upside grade of any defensive player in the 2023 class. Traore is still raw, and at just 237 pounds he's built more like a Vyper at the moment, but he has a tremendous frame and explosiveness that could lead to him moving to the end position at some point.

ROOKIE IMPACT

Notre Dame landed one of the more talented defensive ends in the country when Bryce Young signed on the dotted line. Once a very raw, toolsy player, Young emerged as a truly dominant force as a senior thanks to a bit of a growth spurt and him turning his tools into production.

Young will have to continue developing his strength and technique, but after watching him as a senior in high school he's much, much closer to being in position to help out very early in his career.

The standout defender has a unique combination of elite length, power and explosiveness. If he reaches his potential he has the talent to become a dominant two-way player. He could be a disruptive and physical force against the run, and he showed he has the explosiveness off the edge to dominate the pass game as well.

If he is ready to help out as a freshman it is hard to me to imagine Notre Dame not being good at this position in 2024.