Why Inside Linebacker Jake Chaney Could Be Wisconsin’s X-Factor on Defense

Fall camp is underway for the Wisconsin football program, and there is one specific Badgers player I’ve got my eye on who is on the cusp of breaking out: inside linebacker Jake Chaney. 

The junior linebacker is coming off an impressive season as the No. 3 inside linebacker, registering 38 tackles, 10 pressures [only 50 pass-rushing snaps], 4.0 TFLs, one sack, and one interception in 269 total snaps.

According to Pro Football Focus, Chaney finished with the sixth-best defensive grade on the team last season (74.4) and the best coverage grade among UW’s inside backers.

Now, under the direction of defensive coordinator Mike Tressel, the 5-foot-11, 230-pound linebacker could be one of the X-factors of the Wisconsin football defense.

Wisconsin Football Linebacker Jake Chaney Could Be an X-Factor for the Badgers Defense 

Jake Chaney is a talented young linebacker with a knack for getting after the QB and some impressive closing speed. When you pair that with the work ethic we’ve seen from the Florida native — the results always seem to follow.

He’s a plus run-defender, tackler, and pass-rusher who the Badgers can use as a moveable chess piece on defense because of his ability to make plays in the box, create pressure, or drop into coverage.

pic.twitter.com/Drh5nL3ARe

— Badgers Film Clips (@Badgers_Film) August 7, 2023

It seems like a no-brainer to find as many creative ways to use Chaney as the de-facto third starting inside linebacker to pair and/or swap out with Maema Njongmeta and Jordan Turner to keep everyone fresh and create havoc.

“Quite honestly, I think he was maybe under-recruited, under-valued because he’s not as long as what people would say the perfect linebacker looks like,” Tressel told reporters. “But he has great football instincts. He carries a huge punch. He’s very twitchy. His 10-yard burst, and that’s usually about as far as you’re going; his 10-yard burst is unbelievable. So when you have a guy that has those skill sets, you need to find a way to use them. I think that we do truly have three true starters at inside linebacker.”

Final Thoughts

I firmly believe Wisconsin football will play some three-inside-linebacker sets on defense this season.

Why? Because intelligent coaches find ways to mesh their philosophies with in-house personnel. And Jake Chaney is absolutely a starting-caliber player for the Badgers.

“He’s a one [starter], right?” Tressel said. “You can start saying, ‘Wait a second, how could there be more than two ones?” But he’s a one, and he’s really impressed me because he has the ability to be really heavy-handed where he shocks offensive linemen, and you see them stumble back three yards, and the next play, slip them and make a play in the backfield.”

As GardYourFickell pointed out earlier this summer, Tressel uses a healthy balanced mix of man (around 40%) and zone coverages within his scheme — specifically with his linebackers. This starkly contrasts the assignments Jim Leonhard asked of his linebackers — which was 70% zone coverages and around 15% man.

With Chaney being arguably the Wisconsin football program’s best coverage linebacker — it makes sense for Tressel to have him out there on key passing downs — so his sheer number of snaps should see a significant boost.

When opportunity meets talent and upside, you wind up with a breakout player. The well-rounded nature of Chaney’s game and his skill set pairing well in the new scheme is why he will be the X-Factor for the Wisconsin football defense.

Contact/Follow us @Badger_Notes on Twitter, Subscribe to the BadgerNotes Newsletter here, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, opinion, and analysis. You can also follow Dillon Graff on Twitter @DillonGraff.

Follow this link and use promo code: BADGERNOTES for 25% off your next True Classic order.

Join the Badger Notes watch party and stream Wisconsin Badgers games by following this link.

*Subscribe to BadgerNotes After Dark on Youtube and wherever you find podcasts, the official Wisconsin Badgers podcast of the Big Banter Sports Network.