NC State football snap counts, PFF grades and notes: Defense at Duke

DURHAM -- NC State's defense struggled to consistently slow down Duke's high-powered offense in a 45-33 shootout loss to the Blue Devils on Saturday afternoon at Wallace Wade Stadium. Duke scored touchdowns on four straight drives between late in the second quarter and early in the third quarter to take full control of the game, never relinquishing the lead once it grabbed a 1-point advantage at halftime. The Pack, for the second time this season, did not record a forced turnover, though it posted a season-best three sacks in the defeat. Graduate outside linebacker Cian Slone, who logged two tackles before exiting with an apparent injury, was the unit's highest-graded player, according to Pro Football Focus. Senior cornerback Devon Marshall and redshirt sophomore cornerback Brian Nelson II both followed closely behind as the Wolfpack's top-performing defenders in the evaluator's view. Let’s take a look at NC State’s full list of initial Pro Football Focus grades and snap counts with notes to put some of the data into context.