Top Beaver defenders in 2018: No. 9 Kee Whetzel

In a new series that BeaversEdge.com will be running over the next couple of weeks, we'll be going through the top offensive and defensive players for OSU in 2018 according to Pro Football Focus' analytics. We started the series with the defense, and outside linebacker Kee Whetzel comes in at No. 9 on the list.

Note: Players needed to have seen 100 snaps in order to be on this list... 23 Beaver defenders played 100+ snaps

39 tackles (22 unassisted)

2 sacks

1 pass break up

1 fumble recovery

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Whetzel's best Pro Football Focus grade of the season came against Southern Utah, where the lengthy outside linebacker was graded at 77.0. He recorded six tackles, a quarterback hurry, and four "stops" (plays that constitute a loss for the offense). His six tackles in that game were a season high.

The past couple of seasons, Whetzel has shown flashes of very strong play as an athletic 'backer, but he has yet to reach his potential. He's still on the thin side at 6-foot-3, 206-pounds, which limits him from being an every down outside linebacker. Whetzel has some serious skills with his athleticism; the question here is whether or not he can beef up and take the next step in his game. Can he be a force to be reckoned with or will he just be a role player in Tim Tibesar's defense?

No. 10 Isaiah Dunn (61.8 season grade)