PFF grades for every Hokies player on defense against Miami

Virginia Tech faced a tough challenge on defense last week when it faced Miami, which arguably had one of the best offenses in the country.

There were fireworks at the last second, but unfortunately Virginia Tech couldn’t pull away.

However, the defense showed promise in some moments as Miami only fumbled twice. This also has pros and cons: Miami scored on over 54% of those drives, and of all the scoring drives, all but one were touchdowns.

There were also some good individual performances, albeit some performances that were marred by the result, but still good overall. Aeneas Peebles, Antwaun Powell-Ryland and Caleb Woodson all had sacks. Kaleb Spencer and Mose Phillips both came up with interceptions, and both returned them with wide margins. Dorian Strong also had a significant impact, helping both Phillips and Spencer with their interceptions.

How did Virginia Tech’s defensive players perform on PFF (Pro Football Focus)? Here are the grades for each defensive player with the number of snaps they played in parentheses.

1. DT Aeneas Peebles – 82.9 (44)

2. SS Kaleb Spencer – 73.2 (27)

3. DT Kelvin Gilliam – 69.5 (33)

4. LB Caleb Woodson – 67.4 (44)

5. SS Quintin Reddish – 66.9 (32)

6. Moses Phillips – 65.6 (55)

7. DE Jason Abbey – 65.4 (8)

8. DT Wilfried Pene – 63.8 (39)

9. CB Dante Lovett – 63.2 (26)

10. DT Josh Fuga – 60.6 (30)

11. LB Sam Brumfield – 60.2 (43)

11. Mansoor Delane – 60.2 (71)

13. RE Malachi Madison – 59.1 (2)

14. CB Dorian Strong – 58.2 (72)

15. DE Aycen Stevens – 57.0 (11)

16. S Jaylen Jones – 56.3 (42)

17. DE Antwaun Powell-Ryland – 56.2 (39)

18. DE Keyshawn Burgos – 55.7 (42)

19. DE Cole Nelson – 52.8 (46)

20. CJ McCray – 48.8 (2)

21. S Keonta Jenkins – 46.7 (40)

22. LB Jaden Keller – 46.0 (37)

23. LB Keli Lawson – 38.2 (29)