In three less games, Rutgers sophomore defensive end Aaron Lewis has already surpassed many of the statistics totals he had from a year ago.
Lewis is up to 35 tackles including 6.5 for a loss. He also has a forced fumble and a sack. Those numbers aren't all eye-popping, but Lewis has been better than what the stats show.
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Per Pro Football Focus, Lewis was one of two players (Alabama's Will Anderson, a presumptive first round pick in next year's NFL Draft), to have a pass rushing grade and a run defensive grade of 80 or better.
Those overall season ratings took a slight dip this past weekend against Minnesota. He finished with a defensive grade of 58.9 (65.4 pass rush/55.6 run defense), but he still was in on 10 tackles.
Now opposing defenses are double teaming him to neutralize the emergent force. Lewis is becoming the No. 1 player on the Rutgers defense to game plan for.
“There's no doubt. You saw what Minnesota did. They double teamed him most of the time," head coach Greg Schiano said. "Two things there. No. 1, get used to it, Aaron, because you earned it, and No. 2, how about some other guys, you've got to show up bigger now. Not that guys don't, I think we have some guys that have raised up, but we are young up there, too, with the exception of (Ifeanyi Maijeh), really that's a young group. So understanding when he gets the double team what does that mean for the rest of us, how are they going to block the rest of us. And it's always different when it's first and second down and when it's third down or situational football, because then you're attacking just the pass.
“When it's normal downs, you've got to play the run and the pass so it's not quite as easy to kind of rig it up to help somebody come free. So it's a challenge but as guys get more experienced, it's a feel thing as well. I feel the protection sliding to me, there's certain things I can do. I feel the protection sliding away from me, there's things I can do. That takes repetition, and we are getting better at it. Consistency, being able to feel it every time. Nobody does it every time you know what I mean but nine out of ten times, you feel the slide, you shoot the twist game, it happens naturally. It's called a natural game. But it's anything but natural. It happens over time because guys feel it.”
For the year, Lewis has a very good 84.3 grade. He's hit the quarterback a ton (13 hits, 12 hurries).
Lewis didn't want to reveal any certain techniques he really worked on, he is glad he's been able to upgrade his skillset. He's also seen and heard the outside attention his way.
“It's been cool. The biggest key I think is just keep chopping. It sounds kind of crazy, but it's right," Lewis said. "You have to focus on the moment and just stay where your feet are. Coach likes to preach that a lot. Don't look too much ahead, don't look too much behind, work on the craft and everything we do. Coach always talks about how big practice is, and I truly do believe that. You get better out here.
“You always want to upgrade your level of play, and when it finally happens, you're gonna feel like you did something finally. But there's still so much more that not just me that we want to accomplish on this team. The PFF stuff, that's just something that we can't focus on. We just got to focus on this game, you know, this Michigan game.”
Lewis' d-line mate, Maijeh, a DT, said Lewis never quits on a play and improved prior to the fall.
“He’s active. He never stops and has a high motor," Maijeh said. "If he falls down he gets right back up and works his moves and keeps on going. His pass rush moves (are better). He’s getting deep in his bag with swim moves and swipes. He’s worked a lot more. Little stuff in the offseason.”
Schiano saw the same thing when Lewis was in high school at Williamstown.
"How hard he played," Schiano said on what stood out to him on film. "The same effort he plays with here I saw in high school. He was a rail. He wore the same No. 71, but he was skinny. He just played so hard.”
Lewis puts 110% effort into every play. You never know what could happen.
“I've just been the same player since I was in high school," the 6-foot-5, 250-pounder said. "But one thing that was preached to me in high school a lot was to be the hardest worker in the field. Every time I see someone working hard, or make a nice play, you always want to try to compete and top it. I try to keep my motor running at all times when I'm playing football, and it's just something that really came from me starting in high school.”
Maijeh knows that that Lewis was getting the so-called Aaron Donald treatment against the Gophers, and he expects more of that the rest of the way. It's up to not only Lewis to figure out a way around it, but now Maijeh and others need to step up as well.
“You have to play differently," Maijeh said. "If you’re getting double-teamed a lot, you can ask for help. It’s part of the game plan to free up other guys too. We work off each other.
“If I do so much as getting a knock back for him (pushing the interior o-lineman), that can free him up too. I go up and he can work behind me. Things like that.”
Lewis expects for double teams has the season goes along. He's up for the challenge.
“Double teams, I deal with that like any other block," Lewis told TKR. "It's something that you prepare. You prepare for them coming at your hip. We play in the Big Ten. There's big o-linemen, but you gotta rely on the technique that we get taught by coaches here and just try to be relentless and be aggressive.”
Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisNalwasky.
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