Georgia Football will need to improve pass rush this week

The Georgia Football team has been able to pretty much dominate it’s first three opponents while not putting much pressure on the passer. That needs to change against Missouri.

In the first three games of the season, the Georgia Football team has one sack. No, you did not read that wrong. Despite boasting a wealth of pass rushing talent from the defensive line and outside linebackers, the Dawgs have just a single sack to show for it.

D’Andre Walker came into the season looking like a player that could push for double-digit sacks. Tyler Clark and Jonathan Ledbetter both were pass rushing forces in January. So why haven’t the Dawgs been able to bring down QB’s in these first three games? Well if you believe Kirby Smart, it’s because they haven’t needed to.

Austin Peay and Middle Tennessee both got rid of the ball quickly. Neither gave the Dawgs much chance for sacks. Then against South Carolina, the Dawgs didn’t try to bring Jake Bentley down. Instead, they knew that the Gamecocks couldn’t win without a running game. They pressured Bentley to throw the ball earlier than he would have liked, but they didn’t need to sack him to win that game. The same might not be true this week.

Drew Lock is considered to be one of the best QB’s in the nation. He’s got a big arm and he can sling it around the field like nobody else in the SEC. The Tigers also have explosive down the field receivers who could cause UGA’s young secondary some issues. They also don’t particularly care about running the ball. They’re happy to throw it 60 times in a game and try and win it that way.

So how can the Dawgs make Lock and this offense uncomfortable? Simple really, by hitting him. Watching Georgia play the last few weeks, it’s felt like this defensive front are holding something back. The likes of Brenton Cox, Walker and Tyler Clark have all played really well but they aren’t getting to the QB in the way that I was expecting. That’s going to need to change this week.

If Lock has time, then his receivers will get open. Unlike Bentley, Lock likes to hold on to the ball for a while and give his playmakers time. That should make him more vulnerable to a pass rush if it’s used effectively. He’s only been sacked himself once this season although the Tigers have played a cupcake schedule to start the season unless you think Purdue is good (hint, they probably aren’t). The Dawgs need to break through their offensive line and harass Lock for the duration of this contest if they are going to put together another dominating win. The guy is simply too good for them to sit back as they did against the Gamecocks.

Fortunately, Georgia has players that can be turned loose. While I still expect them to play disciplined like they have for most of the season, this game won’t require quite so much damage control as the previous three. Instead, UGA will need it’s pass rushers to find ways to beat the man in front of them and take Lock down. They’ve got the guys that can do it, but this is the week that we need to see them put it all together and become a truly dominant defense.