Tennessee football: 10 key areas of improvement for Vols during bye week

9. Tennessee needs to tackle better in open space.

Although it’s an issue that really exposed itself against the Georgia Bulldogs, Tennessee football has had an issue with open-field tackling all year. Now, once again, with the transition to the 3-4, all the mental pressure was likely going to cause a bit of a drop-off in tackling.

But it’s still a problem. It seems like every time the Vols could get a stop, ball-carriers fall forward on numerous plays. The main issue is that the Vols have plenty of players who, for their positions, are actually skilled at open-field tackling. They just haven’t come through yet this year.

One of the biggest culprits here has been Darrin Kirkland Jr. Kirkland is one of the smartest players on the team and has easily picked up the 3-4, so he’s always in the right position. It’s why he’s made so many plays this year, including a pick-six.

But whether it’s due to the previous injuries or is just a weakness of his, Kirkland has struggled far too often to tackle in open space. That’s a problem when he’s one of the few guys able to be in the right position all the time.

Other inside linebackers and defensive backs specifically, though, have to do better at it. This is part of the secondary needing to be more aggressive, so these two keys are connected. But given the fact that they still have to face the Auburn Tigers and Missouri Tigers, two teams who like to spread the field, along with the Kentucky Wildcats, who have specific skill players, they’re going to need to tackle much better in open space to have a chance at a bowl this year.