Projected starters, backups, who to watch: Looking at Penn State’s 2022 defensive end depth chart
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Depth chart breakdown
Where does Penn State football stand heading into the 2022 season? Read our series analyzing each position.
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Penn State lost an elite pass rusher when Arnold Ebiketie left for the 2022 NFL Draft, but the team’s defensive end group might be able to make up for the production it lost when he left. He led the team with 9.5 sacks, but there’s reason to believe another Nittany Lion could equal that production this season.
We’ve already looked at the entire offensive depth chart, now let’s look at the defense, starting with the defensive ends.
Projected starters: Redshirt senior Nick Tarburton and redshirt junior Adisa Isaac
The Nittany Lions lost Ebiketie after this season, closing the window on the chances of him playing with Isaac. The redshirt junior tore his Achilles in the 2021 offseason, robbing viewers of the chance to see him and Ebiketie collapsing the pocket from either end and meeting at the quarterback.
Now, Isaac will have to replace his former teammate’s production and try to be the elite pass rusher Ebiketie was in 2021, while Tarburton looks to take the next step forward.
Isaac was set to be the team’s top talent at the position before the injury took him out for the year. Now he should be able to take the spot and prove how good he is in 2022. The redshirt junior is an elite athlete who uses his speed and bend around the edge to get after quarterbacks.
He has excellent size at 6-foot-4, 244 pounds and should be able to continue adding strength to improve. Isaac adding power to his game will open up even more of his pass rushing but more importantly will make him more of a threat against the run. His greatest flaw is similar to Ebiketie’s last season — he struggles when offensive linemen get downhill against him.
Of course, he’ll also need to prove he’s fully recovered from the Achilles injury. That can take time to happen, but if it does he should be Penn State’s most prolific pass rusher this season.
Tarburton, on the other hand, is already a strong contributor in the running game. He holds up well at the point of attack and has grown into a true defensive end after beginning his career at linebacker. He has a motor that’s always running and is strong enough to battle with some of the best offensive tackles in the Big Ten in the run game.
The redshirt senior’s relentless effort helps him in the passing game as well, where he rarely gives up on plays and is constantly chasing after the quarterback. However, he doesn’t have the athletic traits to be a high end pass rusher. That makes his effort level even more important to ensure he contributes when other teams drop back to pass. He only tallied one sack in the 2021 season and will need to improve in that regard this year.
There will be an opportunity for him to become a rotational defensive end rather than a starter if his pass rushing ability doesn’t get to the level it needs to this season.
Key backups: Redshirt junior Smith Vilbert and sophomore Chop Robinson
Tarburton should have a large role no matter what this season, but there will be defensive ends breathing down his neck to take his starting job. Both Vilbert and Robinson have the upside to be full-time starters next year, with the latter having the chance to be the team’s best pass rusher.
Vilbert is sure to be a popular breakout candidate after his performance in the Outback Bowl against the Arkansas Razorbacks last season. He racked up three sacks in the game — the first three of his career — and gave reason to believe he can be successful as a full-time starter.
That being said, Vilbert still needs to continue growing to be a strong contributor. The 6-foot-6, 260 pound defensive end didn’t look particularly adept as a pass rusher when he took the field last season for the most part. He has excellent size and good athleticism but needs to continue getting stronger while refining his technique off the edge.
He gets washed away in the running game more often than you’d like, but has the build to be productive there as well. Despite his production in his biggest game of the 2021 season, Vilbert isn’t the most likely breakout candidate at defensive end for Penn State in 2022.
That distinction belongs to Robinson. The sophomore transferred into Penn State from Maryland and should be a high impact player in the near future. He had two sacks last season in limited action with the Terrapins and should build off that this year.
He split his time between linebacker and defensive end last year, but should be a full-time pass rusher this season. Whether that means he’s in a two- or three-point stance remains to be seen but he should be pinning his ears back and going after quarterbacks whenever possible.
Robinson has impressive athletic traits, showing the explosion off the ball to beat offensive tackles before they can get their hands on them. He can use his flexibility to bend around the edge and get after quarterbacks, while having the strength to engage with tackles when he needs to.
The new Nittany Lion will have to show he can be a full-time player, but he may have more upside than any other non-freshman defensive end currently on the team’s roster.
Freshman to watch: Dani Dennis-Sutton
There might not be a freshman on Penn State’s defense that could be as impactful as Dennis-Sutton could be this season. The freshman is the best pass rusher Penn State has recruited since the program landed Micah Parsons.
He’s a high motor player who can match it with refined technique and high level athleticism. Dennis-Sutton has every desirable trait in an elite defensive end, including his size at 6-foot-5, 255 pounds. He’ll only continue improving as he builds upon his technique and works in the Penn State strength and conditioning program.
The true freshman might be too talented to keep off the field as a freshman, in large part because he should be good enough to leave the program for the NFL after only three seasons — making a redshirt season less valuable.
This story was originally published July 5, 2022 at 10:42 AM.
