Clemson football is expected to have one of the nation’s top defenses in 2022 and if you look at Todd McShay’s 2023 NFL draft rankings it’s easy to understand why.
Defensive end Myles Murphy is tenth overall and the top defensive end on McShay’s list, which also includes Xavier Thomas at number 11 and K.J. Henry at 12. How absurd is it to have three of the top 12 defensive ends in the draft on one defense?
Defensive tackle Bryan Bresee comes in at number 13 overall and number 2 among defensive tackles, ranked behind only Jalen Carter of Georgia at the position. This group also includes Tyler Davis at number 15 and Ruke Orhorhoro at 16.
Trenton Simpson is listed as the third best draft prospect at the outside linebacker position and it’ll be intriguing to see where he ends up post-season as many believe Simpson is poised for a breakout year.
On the backend of a rebuilding secondary, Sheridan Jones is listed as the 18th best safety in the 2023 draft by McShay.
The list shows what we all know and anticipate this season: The strength of the Clemson defense will be the front seven and in particular the extremely deep and talented front four.
There are 8 Clemson football defenders on Todd McShay’s 2023 NFL draft rankings
Both Tre Williams and Thomas have gone down with injuries and while there is some doubt whether Williams will be back for the opener against Georgia Tech on September 5, Thomas is out for four to six weeks, putting him back around the time of the Wake Forest (September 24) or North Carolina State (October 1) games.
Perhaps the bigger news is that of the 115 names on the offensive side not a single one is a Clemson Tiger.
While this not all that surprising considering the issues we’ve discussed all summer long, it’s also sobering heading into a season with a ton of questions on the offensive side of the ball.
It does not necessarily take NFL talent to win regular season and conference championship games, but to succeed in the playoff, more often than not, your team is going to be led by talent that will play at the next level.