* Disclaimer, I don't always agree with PFF grades. But overall, it's an interesting barometer.
I was interested in PFF's MSU grades for run blocking. For a team that rushed for only seven yards, you would think the o-linemen would have failing grades across the board. But, as I suspected, they did not.
Michigan State attempted only 10 tailback run plays with the first string offensive line in the game. I haven't charted all 10, but I charted the first six, and going by memory I would estimate that seven or eight of those 10 runs were productive. And the PFF grades bear that out.
I'm not saying the o-line was great in run blocking, but it was decent for 7 or 8 of those 10 run plays. Small sample size, but this business about only having 7 yards rushing is an example of what happens when you don't have complementary football.
Anyway, PFF gives players a grade from 1 to 100, and also a color coded grade. I've looked at MSU's grades, good and bad, over the last three seasons. And compared it to the grades of Big Ten championship teams like Ohio State and Michigan (last year), or great offensive lines, like Iowa's last year or the year before, and have come up with my interpretation of the PFF numbers scale and what they mean for the reader (you):
(for instance, if you see that someone gets a grade of 68, that might sound like a failing grade or close to it, based on your experience in academic classes. But a 68 is a C-plus on my interpretations of the PFF scale) (and I've charted my estimation on where the Tressell/Dantonio scale of "losing", "functional," "winning" and "championship" levels would come in, in accordance to the PFF grades)
My interpretation of PFF's grades:
Blue: 90 and above: A CHAMPIONSHIP
Darker Green 80-89: B+ WINNING
Green 75-79 B
Light Green 70-74.9 B-
Lightest Green 65-69.9 C+ FUNCTIONAL
Dark Yellow: 62-64.9 C
Yellow: 57-61.9 C-
Orange: 50-56.9 D LOSING
Dark Orange: 41-49 D-
Red: Below 40: F
I put that scale together a couple of years ago and tested it last year, and that's where it landed.
That's just to help you make heads or tails of what a "68.8" means.
Anyway, in run blocking, Michigan State's players graded out thusly:
1. DJ Duplain 72.9 B-, winning
2. Nick Samac 69.4 C+, functional
3. Matt Carrick 67.0 C, functional
4. Jarrett Horst 64.0 C, functional
5. Montorie Foster 61.0
6 Spencer Brown 60.4 C-, functional
I agree with those numbers. Michigan State rushed for only seven yards, but you can't judge an o-line's run blocking on 10 tailback carries. Most of those 10 carries were productive.
I'm assuming PFF gave a negative to Matt Carrick on the play when Berger was stopped for a loss of 5 in the first quarter by Vincent. Carrick lined up inside of him, and let him go while working around him out to the LB level. Not sure if Carrick thought Samac had him or what. We haven't seen a lot of miscommunications like that on the o-line this year, despite the poor rushing yardage outputs. But that was one.
The lowest run blocking grades:
15. Daniel Barker, 53.6
16. Brandon Baldwin, 50.0
17. Tyler Hunt, 46.2
18. Maliq Carr, 49.5
19. Cade McDonald, 41.1
20. Keon Coleman, 33.2
21. Tre Mosley, 32.6
Pass Blocking, the worst:
12. Daniel Barker 36.5
13. Elijah Collins (limited opps)
14. Spencer Brown, 34.7
15. Tyler Hunt, 30.3
Pass blocking, the best (starting OL in bold)
1. Brian Greene, 82.0 B+ winning
2. Nick Samac, 79.3 B, winning
3. Jalen Berger
4. Jarek Broussard
5. Jarrett Horst, 75.3 B-, winning
Maliq Carr was 67.1
Matt Carrick was 63.9 C+ functional
Brandon Baldwin was 61.5 C-
JD Duplain was 57.1 D, Losing
I haven't gone through all of the tape yet, but at least two of the sacks, I felt, were on the QB holding the ball too long.
The first sack was on Carrick.
In terms of total offense grade, five players graded out 70 or higher, which is "winning":
Noah Kim, 87.2 (limited reps, of course)
Nick Samac, 73.5
Jayden Reed, 72.9
Montorie Foster, 72.6
Germie Bernard, 71.6
(Foster, Bernard and Kim played fewer than 20 snaps each, of course, and played against the second string. Although many of those second stringers have started at some point in their careers and almost all of them are four-star recruits).
The five lowest grades
21 Keon Coleman, 45.9
22 Cade McDonald, 41.0
23 Daniel Barker, 40.7
24 Maliq Carr, 38.5
25 Tyler Hunt, 31.5
In my opinion, the two areas that have fallen off the cliff the most since the first two games have been TE play and pass rush. As the schedule has gotten tougher, those areas have dried up. You could argue QB as well, but Thorne actually didn't play all that well in the first two games, either.
I was interested in PFF's MSU grades for run blocking. For a team that rushed for only seven yards, you would think the o-linemen would have failing grades across the board. But, as I suspected, they did not.
Michigan State attempted only 10 tailback run plays with the first string offensive line in the game. I haven't charted all 10, but I charted the first six, and going by memory I would estimate that seven or eight of those 10 runs were productive. And the PFF grades bear that out.
I'm not saying the o-line was great in run blocking, but it was decent for 7 or 8 of those 10 run plays. Small sample size, but this business about only having 7 yards rushing is an example of what happens when you don't have complementary football.
Anyway, PFF gives players a grade from 1 to 100, and also a color coded grade. I've looked at MSU's grades, good and bad, over the last three seasons. And compared it to the grades of Big Ten championship teams like Ohio State and Michigan (last year), or great offensive lines, like Iowa's last year or the year before, and have come up with my interpretation of the PFF numbers scale and what they mean for the reader (you):
(for instance, if you see that someone gets a grade of 68, that might sound like a failing grade or close to it, based on your experience in academic classes. But a 68 is a C-plus on my interpretations of the PFF scale) (and I've charted my estimation on where the Tressell/Dantonio scale of "losing", "functional," "winning" and "championship" levels would come in, in accordance to the PFF grades)
My interpretation of PFF's grades:
Blue: 90 and above: A CHAMPIONSHIP
Darker Green 80-89: B+ WINNING
Green 75-79 B
Light Green 70-74.9 B-
Lightest Green 65-69.9 C+ FUNCTIONAL
Dark Yellow: 62-64.9 C
Yellow: 57-61.9 C-
Orange: 50-56.9 D LOSING
Dark Orange: 41-49 D-
Red: Below 40: F
I put that scale together a couple of years ago and tested it last year, and that's where it landed.
That's just to help you make heads or tails of what a "68.8" means.
Anyway, in run blocking, Michigan State's players graded out thusly:
1. DJ Duplain 72.9 B-, winning
2. Nick Samac 69.4 C+, functional
3. Matt Carrick 67.0 C, functional
4. Jarrett Horst 64.0 C, functional
5. Montorie Foster 61.0
6 Spencer Brown 60.4 C-, functional
I agree with those numbers. Michigan State rushed for only seven yards, but you can't judge an o-line's run blocking on 10 tailback carries. Most of those 10 carries were productive.
I'm assuming PFF gave a negative to Matt Carrick on the play when Berger was stopped for a loss of 5 in the first quarter by Vincent. Carrick lined up inside of him, and let him go while working around him out to the LB level. Not sure if Carrick thought Samac had him or what. We haven't seen a lot of miscommunications like that on the o-line this year, despite the poor rushing yardage outputs. But that was one.
The lowest run blocking grades:
15. Daniel Barker, 53.6
16. Brandon Baldwin, 50.0
17. Tyler Hunt, 46.2
18. Maliq Carr, 49.5
19. Cade McDonald, 41.1
20. Keon Coleman, 33.2
21. Tre Mosley, 32.6
Pass Blocking, the worst:
12. Daniel Barker 36.5
13. Elijah Collins (limited opps)
14. Spencer Brown, 34.7
15. Tyler Hunt, 30.3
Pass blocking, the best (starting OL in bold)
1. Brian Greene, 82.0 B+ winning
2. Nick Samac, 79.3 B, winning
3. Jalen Berger
4. Jarek Broussard
5. Jarrett Horst, 75.3 B-, winning
Maliq Carr was 67.1
Matt Carrick was 63.9 C+ functional
Brandon Baldwin was 61.5 C-
JD Duplain was 57.1 D, Losing
I haven't gone through all of the tape yet, but at least two of the sacks, I felt, were on the QB holding the ball too long.
The first sack was on Carrick.
In terms of total offense grade, five players graded out 70 or higher, which is "winning":
Noah Kim, 87.2 (limited reps, of course)
Nick Samac, 73.5
Jayden Reed, 72.9
Montorie Foster, 72.6
Germie Bernard, 71.6
(Foster, Bernard and Kim played fewer than 20 snaps each, of course, and played against the second string. Although many of those second stringers have started at some point in their careers and almost all of them are four-star recruits).
The five lowest grades
21 Keon Coleman, 45.9
22 Cade McDonald, 41.0
23 Daniel Barker, 40.7
24 Maliq Carr, 38.5
25 Tyler Hunt, 31.5
In my opinion, the two areas that have fallen off the cliff the most since the first two games have been TE play and pass rush. As the schedule has gotten tougher, those areas have dried up. You could argue QB as well, but Thorne actually didn't play all that well in the first two games, either.
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