7 way-too-early predictions for Texas A&M’s offense in 2022
While coach Jimbo Fisher ponders which quarterback will be under center for the season-opener, let’s take a look at the Aggies’ offense and what could it might accomplish in 2022.
Along with a new quarterback, Fisher must decide on other playmakers as well. Texas A&M must replace its leading rusher and receiver as the 2022 season begins in early September. Gone to the NFL are former leading rusher Isaiah Spiller (4th round – Chargers) and receiver Jalen Wydermyer (FA – Bills), and quarterback Zach Calzada has transferred to SEC West rival Auburn.
So how will the Aggies’ offense recover from that, who picks up the slack, and how does it perform next season without last year’s leaders? Here are a bunch of way-too-early predictions for the 2022 season.
1. Max Johnson wins the QB battle
Experience wins the day for Max Johnson. The transfer from LSU thew for 2,814 yards and 27 TDs last season and threw just 6 picks in 373 pass attempts. Taking care of the football is important and Johnson, while not flashy or possessive of the best natural abilities in the conference, is serviceable while Conner Weigman, the future of the position, continues to develop.
Don’t expect Johnson to throw for 3,000 yards in 2022. In fact he might struggle to reach 2,000 in a more balanced attack than what he toiled in at Baton Rouge. But keeping the turnovers to a minimum will be his biggest asset.
2. Aggies score more than last year
Texas A&M scored at a 29.3-point clip a season ago. They’ll score more with Johnson at the helm, despite my prediction for Johnson’s individual numbers to tumble. That’s because the Aggies should be solid in a ground attack that figures to be the feature of the offense. Look for the Aggies to surpass the 30-point mark and rise to among the top 5 scoring teams in the SEC.
3. Devon Achane steps up at RB
It’s time for the speedster to step out of Spiller’s shadow and into the spotlight. He certainly has the ability to become the face of the offense and if the offensive line is as good as I think it’ll be, Achane will have a big year. A 1,000-yard season is all but certain. Can he reach the 1,760-yard mark that Trayveon Williams put up in 2018? Probably not, but Achane will nevertheless have a big season.
4. Ainias Smith returns as the go-to receiver
For the first time in 3 seasons, a wide receiver will be the Aggies’ leading pass catcher. For the second time in 3 seasons, it will be Ainias Smith. That’s right, Smith led the Aggies in receiving yards in 2020 — as a running back. In 2022 he’ll become the Aggies’ go-to wide receiver and have a big year, eclipsing the 800-yard mark.
5. Max Wright becomes a weapon at TE
In 2 of the past 4 seasons, a tight end has led the Aggies in receiving yards. Don’t look for that trend to continue in 2022, but that doesn’t mean the position won’t be critical in the passing game. Used more in a blocking role over the past 2 seasons, Wright will get be targeted more in 2022. No, Wright won’t replace Wydermyer’s production — 40+ catches, 500+ yards each of the past 2 seasons with 10 combined 10 TDs catches. But 20 catches for a TE who has a total of 4 for his career shouldn’t be out of the question.
6. Aggies’ run game boosted
Despite not having Spiller, the Aggies’ run game looks to be even better this season with Achane, Amari Daniels and LJ Johnson Jr. making up an imposing trio. Again, it will depend on how the offensive line jells, but if it does as Fisher expects it will, the run game could be improved over last season. Texas A&M rushed for an average of 183.0 yards per game last season. Look for that total to reach the 200-yard mark in 2022. That would be notable. The Aggies have only averaged 200+ 3 times since averaging 242 during Johnny Manziel’s Heisman year in 2012.
7. Total offense returns to the top 5 in the SEC
In even years, since 2014, the Aggies’ offense has finished among the SEC’s top 5. Well, 2022 is an even year, and yes, watch for the Aggies to make a drastic improvement this season and vault from No. 11 in the SEC a year ago back into the top 5. Not only is the talent and experience there, but with the recent top recruiting classes, look for a few new faces to contribute as well. It all adds up to a big season on offense for Texas A&M in 2022.
I hope Johnson wins the starting QB battle. But, if whoever wins the starting job struggles to get to 2000 yards passing, this team is in trouble. Even Calzada broke that mark last season.
Calzada played the second half of the season banged up. A healthy, more talented and experienced QB will open up Jimbo’s play calling whether it’s Johnson or King. Not to mention more talented receivers available.
Additionally, the offensive line play was poor for much of the season. Hopefully that will not be an issue this year.
O Line played great post Arky.
Let the hype on TAM begin.
It’s talking season. The hype for just about everyone has begun. This is a time for hope until reality sets in for many.
Reality is destroyer of egos for sure.
I love Max Wright, but Jake Johnson and/or Donovan Green will be stepping up as the pass catching TEs. Maybe Blake Smith.
Glenn Sattell really needs to talk to some people that are a little more in touch with the program before putting some of this stuff out.
Seriously. It seems Glenn is always way off about one or two things in every A&M articles. Wright does good things with blocking but he ain’t a receiver. We expect improvememt in the position with Jake and Green, but knowing Jimbo I doubt we see them on field unless the play uses two tight ends.
If they are good enough, they will play. Wydermyer played in all 13 games with 11 starts as a true freshman.
Who was the veteran TE when Wydermyer started?
Glen Beal was Sophomore during Wydermeyer’s first year and had played behind Sternberger in 2018.
Max Wright is a glorified tackle. He will not reach double digit receptions. Johnson will take over the Sternberger role on that 2018 team, and I think Donovan Green’s size and physicality will put Wright on the bench sooner than later.
Don’t discount Donovan Green’s pass catching ability. I wish he would have been here for the spring.
Agree. He was outstanding in the UA game.
Not discounting that at all, he just fits the prototypical tight end mold. I am assuming he will have his hand in the dirt more than Johnson.
I’m looking forward to this season, on both sides of the ball. Hopefully we’ll have a season without a QB injury – we racked up enough of those last year to last a few seasons. We have a lot of young talent and I can’t wait to see them start developing.
I’m thinking the offense will need to score more points in 2022 due to the loss of Mike Elko and a possible drop-off in scoring defense.
Thoughts TAMU fans?
They hired D.J Durkin. He took an awful Ole Miss defense, and made it good. 3rd in the league in sacks with limited talent. I think he has a scheme that will wreak havoc with A&M’s talent.
IDK if it’s a foregone conclusion the defense will have much of a decline. The DB room is looking as deep and talented as I’ve seen it in my 40 years of paying attention. No real drop off with the LBs, and despite losing the “starters”, there are lots of talented guys that have contributed in the rotation in the D-line and a boatload of new talent coming in. Durkin has plenty to work with.
maybe there won’t be a decline, but the last time that much loaded defensive talent was hauled-in a single recruiting class was 2010 with uf. meyer had essentially promised them all (powell, easley, floyd, etc) a starting position and that they were better than what was returning. when they weren’t starting and/or getting a large number of the snaps…the internal turmoil began and started to leak publicly….and then we all know how meyer ultimately handled it.
i’m not suggesting that we’ll see the same outcome in CS, but it’s something to definitely watch. nil money will help keep a couple of these freshman egos in somewhat check, of which meyer didn’t have the benefit of, but if the team isn’t winning and certain players believe they’re getting cheated out of some playing time……look out
With this much D-line talent, transfers will be inevitable. As long as you keep the best guys, you are ahead of the curve. A Georgia fan knows that.
Plus, I think it’s common knowledge now just how much of a jacka** Meyer is when things are not going his way.
agree that kids transferring is imminent. the trick is to assure that there is no real apathy or internal squabbles amongst the players while the displeased players are still on campus. it’ll likely boil down to what was actually promised any of the kids, if anything.
saban has stayed clear from such issues due to the fact he’s never promised anything to anyone, just that the best player will play. meyer didn’t. TBD with fisher….or someone else connected to the program and this class.
heading into nsd for the ’10 class, meyer wasn’t viewed as a ‘jacka**,’ but just a jerk and lacking in compassion and integrity.
The secondary could be improved with the young talent coming in. Richardson, Chappell, J. Jones, Anderson and Harmon all return.
I believe you were thinking of Antonio Johnson, not Anderson. Don’t discount having a healthy Myles Jones back as a grown-a** man.
Thanks for catching that typo.
I have seen Myles follow too many receivers into the end zone over his career. I honestly hope others are good enough to keep him out of the rotation.
Both excited and worried at the same time.
We certainly have way better talent than the four starters that left on the DL. But experience matters.
Regarding Elko, have lots of respect for the way he upgraded our defense to a new level but we were beginning to see his cap. A lot of fans were frustrated with his bend but don’t break style of defense which we believe to be the cause of losses in some games last year. DJ is more aggressive and like the comment above turned around Ole Miss’s defense to a greater degree. He’s going to have a lot of fun with the amount of talent there is on the defense.
His prevent defense certainly cost the LSU game. Perhaps others as well.
Johnson will likely not win the QB battle. Examining his 2021 film, he hold onto the ball too long and thus takes too many sacks. This was evident in the spring game as well. Taking sacks will not go down well with Fisher. Also watching his 2021 film, his low interception total was as much luck as skill. He had a habit of throwing the ball up for grabs. If Weigman is given the chance to earn the starting role, he will probably earn it. His passing was at least as good as Johnson in the spring game, but he was never sacked.
If dropped passes and pass interference were counted as completions, the results would be:
King: 14/34 (41%) with 2 INT’s
Johnson: 18/31 (58%) with I INT.
Weigman: 12/20 (60%) with 0 INT.
This give a better view of the quarterback accuracy. The number of drops was just abysmal. And the drops included above were passes that hit the receiver in the hands, with no excuse for not being caught.
Johnson was officially sacked three times, but realistically would have likely been sacked eight times had he not been wearing a green jersey.
King obviously had a shoulder issue in the second half. This was evident by watching him between plays and in how he carried his arm. The lack of zip on his throws was further evident. King has a good arm as he demonstrated in high school and in his limited time last season. When short throws are lobbed short, any serious observer knows there is a physical issue. Unfortunately for fans, King’s status in the quarterback race cannot be judged from this game.
Weigman looked very good. His composure was excellent, as demonstrated on the first snap when the ball was snapped early and Conner made a poised recovery. Weigman was as accurate as Johnson, but avoided pressure much better. He also has the quickest release of the three.
At receiver, barring injuries there should be plenty of targets. Stewart looks great and Marshall holds great promise as shown in the UA game. Hez and Lane have great hands and are reliable even though perhaps not deep threats. Preston can be good if he can hold onto the ball. Moose will be a solid backup for Smith, but Brown explosiveness may allow him to surpass Moose.
Wright is a great blocking tight end, but he will not fill the receiving role. Look for Johnson or Green to be the go to tight end, probably surpassing Smith early on.
Will the offensive line gel by the opener? This is a key question and will determine if A&M ups its scoring production. The potential and talent are certainly present. While losing Green to the draft must be overcome, Johnson being gone is a positive. The line should be better than last year’s in spite of Green’s departure. Time will tell.
Well done old Ag. I would caution putting any kind of conclusion from the QB production in the spring game. No way Jimbo calls those plays in that wind if it’s a game that counts.
Agree. This – along with the insane number of drops – is why I looked at accuracy rather than completions.
As much as detailed your analysis is, there’s no way Weigman’s starting the season. You are definitely right about the problem Max has but King has as much of an issue plus his lack of SEC starting experience. I’m just counting out Weigman because although we all love his quick release, he’s still a true freshman with absolutely zero experience and there’s hardly any school that puts a true freshman under center.
You are probably correct. But should the starter (Johnson or Haynes) stumble, there is a chance.
Oh yeah. And I’m excited. If those starters stumble, just better to let Weigman stack experience as early as possible.
I don’t think Jimbo is going to base his starting QB decision on the 2 hours the fans happened to see in gale force winds. He will primarily make it on the leadership traits and command of the offense shown by reading the defenses and getting his complicated offense run the way he likes it. I believe King will be given a chance to start initially if he continues to grow between now and game 1.
I’m a Max Johnson fan but you did hit on something. Holds the ball too long. The other thing y’all will find out is that his ball hangs too long and it’s just not in the right place. His throw is catchable but it’s too high, low, behind to where the receiver doesn’t catch it in stride.
Good luck to Max!
Noticed that in the spring game. His ball would always be place behind the receiver’s back. I’m sure the wind played some factor
A lot of these misplaced throws hit the receivers in the hands in the spring game. Need to be better out wide.
Are any of the freshman expected to contribute?
I expect some freshman WR will. Maybe 2. Last year the WR corps was decimated by injuries. Not a single starter other than Ainias Smith was healthy. Pair that with the leagues worst QB. We all saw what happened. I imagine the freshmen on defense will have more impact this year than the freshmen on offense. They recruited too much talent in the DL and DB for someone not to step up, imo.
I would guess you’ll see a heavy dose of the freshmen DL getting rotation time. Easy to do along the DL to keep them fresh. Probably hard to keep Evan Stewart out of the WR rotation as well.
Evan Stewart won Spring MVP. He will start I think.
I can see DLine guys getting snaps as well. Which, I do not know.
Likely in numerous areas – DL, WR, TE and possibly DB.
Last season there were at least 5 real contributors as true freshmen. This incoming class has over 4 times as many “top 100” recruits. I expect several (8-10?) to contribute in the rotation if not start. Makes for some great competition.
Max Wright will not become a weapon at TE. This guy knows nothing.
Lost him there as well
Everybody writing off King but he’s the obvious choice for starter
Jimbo will start whoever he believes can run his offense best. King has won that competition before, but I can see how some think Max has a real shot to win this fall. Regardless, I sure like the QB depth better this season.
He has played 5 quarters of college football. I think he has a case of noodle arm. He is the best athlete of the 3, but do his running capabilities translate to the SEC? He’s a string bean and only listed at 200 pounds.
One should watch more than the spring game before coming to that conclusion (which is incorrect). He has a good arm as evidenced by his high school play and the Kent State game. Not Calzada type arm strength (which is a real rarity), but good. {And arm strength is not dependent upon the level of competition, before anyone dismisses the high school tapes.}
How would his running capabilities not translate?
His sleek frame resulting in him being injury prone could cause his running abilities to not translate…
His throwing motion is objectively bad, and I came to that conclusion after watching him last year. But I’m not the coach, so this is my humble opinion.
I know what EKing is referring to. His throwing motion always did stand out to me being so awkward. I mean as long as he’s accurate, it wouldn’t bother me but that’s not been the case really with all the interceptions he’s thrown already with limited showing on field.
He has the Tim Tebow elongated motion and slow release
Everyone loves King for his speed providing more options but I was surprised at how well Max ran albeit it was a spring game so the secondaries weren’t closing in with hostility. Max is probably less likely to get injured as well if a defender hits. With King? not so sure… He still looks so fragile.
1 Wrong, King will be the starter.
2 True
3 True
4 True
5 False
6 True
7 Maybe
The Aggie offense in 2023 will return all starters except Ainias Smith.
Robinson could go pro.