LSU football: 5 questions Coach O’s LSU Tigers must answer in 2020

4. Who replaces defensive stars after NFL Draft exodus?

For years, the narrative with LSU football was that they were a defensive team whose lack of offensive prowess was holding them back from competing for a National Championship. That’s one of the reasons the 2019 season was so shocking because not only did the offense finally arrive but the defense actually took a step back, ranking 32nd in the country in points allowed per game.

Despite the fact that the defense was not at an elite level last season, the Tigers boasted elite talent on every level. K’Lavon Chaisson and Patrick Queen were first-round picks as an edge pass-rusher and linebacker, respectively, while cornerback Kristian Fulton and safety Grant Delpit were both second-round picks. And they weren’t the only players now in the NFL either.

The question now becomes who will step into those roles for the Tigers now that they’ve lost so much star power. At cornerback, we know true sophomore Derek Stingley Jr. is a star but LSU will need either 5-star freshman Elias Ricks or sophomore Cordale Flott to step up opposite him. Meanwhile, they’ll be banking on North Dakota State graduate transfer Jabril Cox to be an answer to replace Chaisson at outside linebacker.

Moreover, there are answers in the front seven as Tyler Shelvin has star potential. And JaCoby Stevens could be the next star safety. But while there are seemingly replacements for the players that LSU lost, those guys must step in and produce, and, as we’ll touch on shortly, they’ll need to be better than the group was in 2019.