Michigan DC Jesse Minter breaks down depth chart at key positions

Michigan defensive coordinator Jesse Minter is heading into year 2 with the Wolverines, what will be year 3 of a defense scheme installed in 2021 under former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald. With the Amoeba scheme fully installed, Minter and Michigan are entering an intriguing phase. Players who have been here are now fully immersed in the system. Recruits and transfers who have been brought in since 2021 were brought in because of a fit in the system.

Michigan is now prepared to maximize the defense with a loaded roster of players who are ready to execute it at an elite level. In a recent appearance on In The Trenches, Jesse Minter went through his defense and gave shape off the depth chart.

STRONG SIDE STARTER: Braiden McGregor or Derrick Moore
EDGE STARTER: Jaylen Harrell
-MAIN ROTATION: Josaiah Stewart
-BACKUP: Kechaun Bennett TJ Guy

In the primary defensive end role, replacing Mike Morris, Minter had great things to say about McGregor and Moore. "Braiden McGregor, first off, him and Derrick play the same position." Minter said. "I think the two of them are just tailor-made for what we ask of that spot. Have the skillset to be really, really high-end players." While either play could take a lead role here, early expectations is they will split the role pretty evenly out the gate.

It also sounds like Jaylen Harrell will no longer have his own SAM role of sorts and will be included more as the weak side EDGE. "Jaylen is one of our most consistent, complete players of how he plays down after down, play after play. Versus the run and the pass. Very technical."

McGregor and Moore will hold down one side, while Harrell and Josaiah Stewart will hold down the other. I have been comparing Stewart to Josh Uche, and it sounds like Minter envisions a similar role. "Really, really physical. In a baseball term, he's our change up in the sense of he's six-foot, maybe six-one. Not as big and long as our other guys but he has a different skillset as a rusher. When a tackle has to block Braiden one play, Derrick the next play, Jaylen the next play, throw Josaiah at them, there's some good versatility there amongst those four guys."

The top 4 rotation of the EDGE is largely settled, but Minter is also excited about the depth that behind them that has taken a big leap this spring. "Kechaun Bennett is one of them and TJ Guy being the other. I call it the Michigan deal, by the third year you're all of a sudden a monster."

5T STARTER: Kris Jenkins
DT STARTER: Mason Graham
NT STARTER: Kenneth Grant
-MAIN ROTATION: Rayshaun Benny
-BACKUP: Cam Goode

No real shocks here, Michigan is elite at the top of the defensive line. This starts with a player who could have entered the NFL Draft but elected to return to Ann Arbor, Kris Jenkins. "It's hard not to start with Kris Jenkins, he's a monster. He gets bigger and bigger every time I see him. His work ethic. The thing about him is the way he plays is the way we want all of our guys to play."

Jenkins will play alongside Mason Graham, who burst onto the scene as a freshman in 2022. "Everybody knows about the freshman year that he had. Excited about him. Another guy that just gets better and better on the field."

Michigan will once again likely play with a base defense that features two defensive tackles, but they can go three by adding Kenneth Grant who will get plenty of snaps either way in rotation. "I think Kenneth Grant is gonna be a name everybody is going to know about. He's a monster in the middle and has a chance to be a really, really dominant type of player here."

It will be a 5-man rotation on the defensive line with Rayshaun Benny and Cam Goode factoring in. Minter gave the sense Benny will be included with the top group often, so it will likely be more of a 4 man with Goode as a depth piece. "A guy that might be the most improved since I've been here, Rayshaun Benny. He's a guy—I thought he made some big plays late in the year."

MIKE STARTER: Junior Colson
WILL STARTER: Michael Barrett
ROTATION: Ernest Hausmann, Nikhai Hill-Green
-BACKUPS: Jimmy Rolder, Micah Pollard, Jaden Hood

No group has turned over quite like the linebackers. A group that was limited last season by depth and injuries is now loaded, and once again led by coach Chris Partridge. Junior Colson enters his junior year and Minter believes it's time for him to take a big leap. "Junior has high of a ceiling as anybody on our defense. We've had a lot of talks about that. I think it's time for him to become—not just he's a good player and flies around and he makes some plays, he needs to become the guy where everybody knows who he is, where he is."

Michael Barrett is another defender who turned down the NFL to return to Michigan, and Minter says he and Colson are the incumbent starters. They are each being pressed by transfer addition Ernest Hausmann. "Ernest Hausmann is a great pickup. Difference there, in our stadium he's made big plays. He's played in a game there, he's played in a lot of the Big Ten venues and played at a high level at Nebraska. Couldb't be happier about the addition of him"

In terms of depth Minter included Nikhai Hill-Green in the top 4, giving them their own tier in terms of rotations. But the depth keeps going, and Minter was not shy about saying the depth this year is a massive upgrade over 2022.

"Jimmy Rolder, Micah Pollard, Jaden Hood, those guys are all developing, progressing, trying to get to that, OK, who is trying to be the fifth guy? Who are we giving snaps to? Tremendous competition. Overall, I would say the weakness of ours last year, not the way Junior and Mike played, but the lack of depth at that position throughout the course of the year. Truth be told, it probably came back to bite us later in the year. Those guys got a little banged up, I don't think we were full strength when we needed to be. Really excited to be able to roll guys in there a little bit more, take a few snaps off the top couple and see if we can play really, really well at that position."

CB1: Will Johnson
CB2: Ja'Den McBurrows or Amorion Walker
NICKEL: Mike Sainristil
FREE SAFETY: Rod Moore
STRONG SAFETY: Makari Paige
ROVER: RJ Moten
-CORNERBACK DEPTH: Keshaun Harris, Myles Pollard, Jyaire Hill

Much like the defensive line, not a lot of groundbreaking information here. We know Will Johnson is locked in at CB1 as one of the best corners in the nation, and Mike Sainristil returns. Minter thinks Sainristil can join that elite group as well. "My expectations are for Mikey to be one of the top DBs in the whole country. He's talented enough, he's skilled enough. He's got the right mindset, he's made plays."

Amorion Walker is making the same WR to CB transition that Sainristil made, something Minter says makes Sainristil a valuable resource for Walker who has the skills but needs some time at the position. "What I say, he has the traits, the skills to be able to play the position. He hasn't played the position enough to be really comfortable yet."

No shocks with Minter's confidence in the safety position, but I believe he gave one tell to a theory I have had all offseason. "Tremendous group at the safety position. Just feel really good about Rod Moore, the amount of snaps he's played here, the big plays he's made in big moments. Makari Paige, the jump he took this pasts season. RJ kind of being a jack-of-all-trades for us. You throw Mikey in there and his versatility to play, really, all the spots back there."

One of the biggest reasons the Michigan defense thrives is it adjusts to its strengths; it doesn't force players into positions. Minter makes it clear that will continue in 2023, and with where Michigan's strengths are, we can make some assumptions.

The pass rush will continue to be a committee approach. Obviously, you a hope a player breaks out and becomes a dominant force, but with 4 players you trust on the EDGE, interior linemen that can get to the quarterback, and a deep linebacker group, there are plenty of ways to create pressure.

Michigan's defense tends to play in either a 4-2-5 or a 2-4-5 depending on if you consider the EDGE rushers linebackers or defensive ends. More importantly, they use 5 defensive backs a lot.

One of the biggest reasons the Michigan defense thrives is it adjusts to its strengths; it doesn't force players into positions. Minter makes it clear that will continue in 2023, and with where Michigan's strengths are, we can make some assumptions.

The pass rush will continue to be a committee approach. Obviously, you a hope a player breaks out and becomes a dominant force, but with 4 players you trust on the EDGE, interior linemen that can get to the quarterback, and a deep linebacker group, there are plenty of ways to create pressure.

Michigan's defense tends to play in either a 4-2-5 or a 2-4-5 depending on if you consider the EDGE rushers linebackers or defensive ends. More importantly, they use 5 defensive backs a lot. Michigan is going to use its best players, and if that is 3 safeties instead of 3 corners, that's what they will do. We may not know who CB2 is, but the second corner is going to be Mike Sainristil. They aren't taking Sainristil off the field for McBurrows or Walker. I think we will see a lot of looks with Johnson, Sainristil, Moore, Paige, and Moten.

Moten can be used like a safety/linebacker hybrid and allow Michigan to switch into a 4-3 easily. Which ties into Michigan's other strength, linebacker. Michigan utilizes the two linebackers look because that is the base of the Amoeba defense, but don't be surprised if Michigan goes with more three linebacker looks this season. Michigan had to use two linebackers last season because they were relying on Junior Colson and Michael Barrett. With a healthy Nikhai Hill-Green, an improved Jimmy Rolder, and the addition of Ernest Hausmann, Michigan could utilize more 4-3 or 3-3-5 looks to take advantage of the strength at linebacker.

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