Clemson's Top 5 returners on defense by PFF grade |
Brandon Rink
· · Sunday, June 22 2025
Diving further into some key returners for Clemson football’s high hopes in the 2025 season with the help of Pro Football Focus.
Parker was the darling of both traditional and advanced stats in a high-impact sophomore campaign. He is regarded as a Top 3 NFL draft pick for 2026 by some outlets as part of a D-line that PFF ranks as the best in college football. “Parker is my No. 3 edge rusher and led all returning Power Four edge defenders with 12 sacks last season. He was also one of only three in that same group who earned 80.0-plus grades both as a pass-rusher [85.5] and run defender [80.8],” PFF’s Max Chadwick writes. Purdue transfer and expected starter opposite Parker, Will Heldt, tallied a 72.3 PFF grade last year and posted 28 QB pressures, which would’ve been second only to Parker’s 51 for the Tigers (12 sacks/28 hurries/11 hits).DE T.J. Parker - 2024 PFF grade: 87.4
DL Peter Woods - 2024 PFF grade: 83.3
Woods is another member of PFF’s Top 3 overall 2026 NFL draft big board (3), and there’s some anticipation around what he can do with a more set role on the interior and transforming his body over the offseason.
“Woods is my top returning interior defender and leads all returning Power Four defensive tackles in run-defense grade (89.7) and pass-rush win rate (14.9%) since 2023,” Chadwick said. "Woods spent the majority of his sophomore year playing out of position at edge defender and still earned an 83.3 PFF grade on the season. Over his first two seasons of college football, he’s both the highest-graded and most valuable returning Power Four defensive tackle, according to PFF’s wins above average metric…His power and agility...make him a nightmare for any offensive lineman."
Per PFF, Woods lined up outside the offensive tackle on 122 snaps and over the opposing offensive tackle on 49 last season (43.3% of his snaps). With a higher overall PFF grade in 2023 (87.6), he only lined up at DE for 17.9% of his snaps.
Peter Woods might be the SCARIEST DT in all of college football.
— NFL Rookie Watch (@NFLRookieWatxh) June 12, 2025
One NFL scout reportedly believes Woods’ game has “plenty of shades” of Jalen Carter (Eagles DT) to it.
Woods has been training with Cass Middleton (NFL/CFB DL trainer) who has worked with names like Mykel… pic.twitter.com/ikWJpXDHeL
CB Avieon Terrell - 2024 PFF grade: 82.3
The playmaking corner Terrell anchors a defensive group that’s ranked No. 4 in college football by PFF.
“The younger brother of current Atlanta Falcons corner A.J. Terrell, Avieon is projected to follow in his brother’s footsteps from Clemson to the first round of the NFL Draft,” Chadwick said. “The younger Terrell is a much better run-defender than his brother, placing fourth among all cornerbacks with a 90.7 run-defense grade this past season while his three forced fumbles tied for second. He’s still excellent in coverage as well, leading all Power Four corners with 14 forced incompletions in 2024.”
A next progression in his game will be physicality with fewer penalty flags. He went from zero flags in 374 snaps as a freshman to a team-leading seven last year (per PFF), extending some opposing drives that ended in scores.
CB Ashton Hampton - 2024 PFF grade: 75.1
Hampton’s 45.7 passer rating allowed last season was eighth among Power Four corners (PFF). He nabbed two interceptions in 455 snaps with four starts in 14 games.
He totaled 30 tackles and six pass breakups.
Clemson pulled him out of Florida State’s backyard in Tallahassee as a 4-star prospect. His dad Alonzo was an NFL Europe teammate with Tigers cornerbacks coach Mike Reed.
LB Wade Woodaz - 2024 PFF grade: 74.5
Woodaz is the elder in the starting returning linebacker duo that leads PFF’s No. 9-rated linebacker group.
"Woodaz was the honorable mention on my top-10 linebacker rankings and is incredibly versatile in coverage as a former safety,” Chadwick said. “He forced five incompletions last season and has picked off three passes since 2023. The rising senior is also a weapon as a blitzer, tallying 22 pressures last year — a top-20 mark in the Power Four."
He ranked third on the team with that pressures tally, behind Parker and Payton Page (24).
Woodaz almost doubled his total snap count from 2023 to 2024 (363 to 721) and forced three more fumbles (3 to 0) and notched 13 more stops (31 to 18).
Clemson's Top 5 returners on offense by PFF grade
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