Projected Defensive MVP:
Alistair:
This is a tough one for me. Plenty of outside writers talk a lot of crap about the Dawgs defense this season, but I can clearly see 4 or 5 starters that could play at an All-SEC level. However, my favorite of the entire bunch and the guy I believe will be the leader of this team is Jonathan Ledbetter. He doesn’t get a lot of recognition because of the role he plays, but this defense got better as the year went on in part because he kept improving. I fully expect him to have the best season of his career and become the key cog that the whole unit revolves around.
Davis:
Deandre Baker will be Georgia’s defensive MVP in 2018. Baker chose to forgo the NFL draft to return for his senior season in Athens. He’s one of the best defensive backs in the country and could be drafted early in the first round of next year’s NFL draft. Georgia will have many new faces in the defensive backfield. Baker provides the leadership and experience necessary to make sure the secondary is not a point of weakness for the Dawgs in 2018.
Kyle:
At one point last season, according to College Football Film Room, J.R. Reed led the nation in tackle percentage. Their calculation of how many tackles a defender made per each attempt. His percentage was 100-percent. The only defensive back with 100-percent at that point of the year. He ended the year at 84.3-percent, one of the highest for a DB.
A missed tackle by Reed is rare, he is always near the ball carrier. I believe that Reed could possibly match Roquan Smith’s impact as a defensive back. Because he always makes the tackle and he can run the field just like Smith.
Mike:
DeAndre Walker. Walker has already shown what he can do while having to share the field with NFL players Roquan Smith and Lorenzo Carter. The outside linebacker should be the standout on an extremely talented defense. He had 5 and a half sacks and 13 and a half tackles for loss in 2017. Look for those numbers to double in 2018.