DEPTH CHART

SPRING PROJECTION

Reviewing Oregon's 2016 season and looking ahead to spring drills., Fr.;, Fr.;, Jr.;, Fr., Jr.;, So.;, Jr.;, Fr.;, RFr.;, RFr., Sr.;, Jr.;, Sr.;, Fr.;, RFr.: The emergence ofas a freshman all-American was a positive footnote to a season in which Oregon's linebackers otherwise struggled. Though the Ducks experimented with various lineups and looks, run defense remained an issue all season. Dye was an absolute monster off the edge, leading the defense with 91 tackles, including 13 tackles for loss that included 6.5 sacks.was limited to seven games by injury; he averaged nearly eight tackles per game when he did play, second behind Dye. The Ducks also enjoyed a midseason emergence from, who played the best football of his career late in the season. He averaged a little over eight tackles per game in November, providing a physical presence up the middle that the UO defense sorely needed.: Junior college transfer, senior walk-on, junior, sophomore walk-onand freshmanall had chances to earn more playing time at the inside spots. Apelu's heart shined brightly with a nine-tackle performance at Cal. Overall, the group generally gave up size up front, a tough matchup problem to overcome. On the outside, Dye's classmateworked his way onto the field for defense and special teams. He's got a home run attitude and a high-revving motor, good qualities on which the freshman can build.: Three freshman linebackers were pressed into action — Dye, Winston and Simms — and a fourth nearly joined them,He was with the travel squad for a few weeks early in the season, but ultimately his redshirt was preserved. Thus he spent the rest of the year working with the scout team alongside veteran scoutsand. Of that group, Rugraff looked at times like he was closest to making the jump to the travel squad if needed., So.;, So.;, Sr., Sr.;, So.;, Sr.;, So.;, So., Sr.;, RFr.;, Jr.;, So.: As noted in the D line review, this group going forward could also include another set of outside linebackers, if new coordinatortransitions to his preferred 3-4 front. The Ducks are only a year removed from that front themselves, so it wouldn't figure to be a tough transition. On the outside, Dye is a star already, and Winston looks like a capable option as well. On the inside, the Ducks need Swain to keep building on his strong second half, and for another quality starter or two to jump out. Simms is a physical presence who had some injury issues as a freshman, while Hotchkins and Mattingly will be pressed to take advantage of their last shot to contribute.