Penn State Football: Jonathan Sutherland bolsters safety spot

Penn State football lost Nick Scott, but it brings back starting safety Garrett Taylor and two contributors, including rising star Jonathan Sutherland.

VBR dove head first into previewing some of Penn State football’s defensive units and individual players this week. Today, I wanted to keep that trend going, talking about backup safety Jonathan Sutherland. The four-star player out of Ottawa, Ontario flew out of the starting gate after redshirting in 2017.

He played important snaps in every single game and also started one. Sutherland recorded 38 tackles, two tackles for loss, one pass defended and one forced fumble. Safeties Nick Scott and Garrett Taylor held down the back end but got solid help from the youngster.

His emergence means big things for the secondary this season. The defense lost Scott and is likely looking at Lamont Wade for the other safety spot, but with the return of Sutherland, he adds some much-needed depth to the position. He’s sure to see his production and time on the field increase.

It makes sense why he started seeing time with veteran safeties already in place in 2018. He made plays in the open field. Any great defender, specifically at the safety spot, must make tackles in space against fleet-footed offensive stars. Sutherland offers that.

He also knows where the football is. As a freshman, he had a signature play, putting his helmet on the football against Indiana and popping it up in the air for a fumble that Penn State recovered. A key play in what turned out to be a narrow, 33-28 victory for the Nittany Lions.

Any defense that’s gotten as much media attention and hype for the 2019 season as Penn State has in recent days needs depth. Sutherland is one of those pieces in a large puzzle that fits into what many think is a top-ranked defense.

He’ll be a player to watch as the third safety on Penn State’s defense and someone that gives confidence should one of the two starters be out.