Texas A&M's Ugly Kentucky Loss Exposes Problems PFF Can't Hide
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Texas A&M’s 31-21 loss to Kentucky wasn’t just an upset. It exposed problems on both sides of the ball that the Aggies can’t afford to carry into the heart of SEC play.
The latest Pro Football Focus grades offer a few individual bright spots, but they don’t change the larger picture.
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Texas A&M fell behind 28-7 in the third quarter, quarterback Marcel Reed struggled to find rhythm and the Aggies’ defense gave up 408 total yards in a home loss that dropped Mike Elko’s team to 2-1.
Elko didn’t try to soften the result afterward.
“I don’t take any positives from this game,” Elko said. “Kentucky came in here and whopped us.”
Reed completed 26 of 49 passes for 236 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He also led Texas A&M with 80 rushing yards and scored on a 5-yard run in the fourth quarter, but PFF gave him a 56.3 offensive grade and 55.2 passing grade.
His biggest problem wasn’t only downfield accuracy.
Reed completed just two of seven throws traveling at least 20 yards, while 14 of his incompletions and one interception came on throws between zero and five yards.
Tight end Kiotti Armstrong led the offense with an 85.7 PFF grade. Mario Craver earned a 76.3 while producing a career-high 11 catches for 119 yards.
Offensive lineman Lamont Rogers posted a 73.4 overall grade and 76.1 run-blocking mark.
But even relatively strong pass-protection grades came with an ugly number: Kentucky generated 18 pressures.
The defense wasn’t much cleaner.
Kentucky quarterback Kenny Minchey completed 14 of 18 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns. The Wildcats also rushed for 156 yards and scored twice on the ground.
Freshman defensive lineman Landon Rink earned Texas A&M’s best defensive grade at 81.8, including a 79.5 against the run. Bryce Perry-Wright checked in at 76.6, while Ryan Henderson earned a 75.0.
The larger issues were missed tackles and inconsistent pressure.
Texas A&M missed 12 tackles against Kentucky after missing 11 the previous week. Safety Dalton Brooks accounted for five Saturday.
Elko was particularly frustrated with the secondary’s discipline.
“We had a lot of eye violation issues,” he said. “You can’t have gimmes in this conference.”
That matters because the schedule gets considerably less forgiving from here.
MORE: Marcel Reed’s Two Picks, Defensive Collapse Sink Texas A&M Vs. Kentucky
Texas A&M visits LSU next Saturday night in Baton Rouge. After Kentucky exposed problems with quarterback consistency, tackling and defensive disruption, the Aggies no longer have the luxury of treating those issues as early-season growing pains.
They’re now SEC problems.
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