Why is the entire conversation about Purdue Boilermakers's defense always about the secondary? Everyone saw the yards we gave up through the air last year, but the fix starts up front. The real question is, can this new defensive staff finally generate a consistent pass rush without blitzing six guys every down?
We ranked near the bottom of the Big Ten in sacks last season, and that puts any defensive backfield in an impossible spot. It doesn't matter who you have at corner if the quarterback has all day. The spring focus has to be on developing the defensive line and those new edge transfers to win one-on-one matchups. If they can't improve that havoc rate, we'll be having the same exact conversation next year about coverage breakdowns.
Look at the teams that win. They get pressure with four. Are we even close to that? The scheme can be perfect, but if the front four can't disrupt the pocket, the whole system collapses. So I'm asking, when will we see a defensive line at Purdue that offenses actually have to game plan for?