FSU football: Fixing FSU's biggest defensive issues on third downs

The FSU defense was supposed to be the team strength in 2024, while the FSU offense figured out some things. While the defense has been the better of the two units, it's been nowhere near what we'd thought it would be, particularly against the run and on third downs. However, those two areas go hand-in-hand. FSU's inability to stop the run(some of that is because they have faced two dynamic dual-threat QBs) has resulted in teams facing more manageable third downs. Opposing offenses have had 25 third downs and converted 14 opportunities(56 percent conversion rate). FSU only allowed 28.79 percent conversions on third downs last season.

"Our third-down defense hasn't been good enough. And a lot of those situations have been the mediums and shorts," according to FSU defensive coordinator Adam Fuller in his Monday press conference.

The biggest issue is only nine of the 25 third downs have been third and 7 or longer. That means 64 percent of the third downs faced have been third and six or shorter. That's not good enough and gives the opposing offense the luxury of going with a run or a pass on third down. However, if they can consistently put teams in 3rd and 7 or longer, that at least lets your pass rushers know they can likely come after the quarterback(especially if he's a more pro-style quarterback). I think this is an area where they can see some improvements defensively when they don't have to worry about the quarterback's leg so much. Plus, Georgia Tech and Boston College had solid offensive lines, and that won't be the case for the majority of the opponents remaining. If FSU can improve against the run and improve their communication on the backend of the defense, I think we'll start to see this defense evolve into a respectable unit.