Spring practice is set to commence next week, as Tennessee’s 2020 signing class and revamped staff are in the books.

The Vols added 23 signees to the roster, including four early enrollees and transfers Cade Mays and Velus Jones. They also have three new coaches, highlighted by Jimmy Braumbaugh at defensive line and co-DC, Jay Graham at running backs and Shelton Felton at outside linebackers.

Tennessee should have close to a full compliment of players available for Jeremy Pruitt's third spring camp, but heralded sophomores Wanya Morris and Quavaris Crouch will both be sidelined from offseason surgeries. Senior cornerback Baylen Buchanan is likely limited to non-contact work, too.

Here’s an educated look at Tennessee’s defensive depth chart this spring…

Tennessee is expected to field a strong defense in 2020, with both Pro Football Focus and SP+ ranking the Vols among the Top 10 units in the country early in the preseason process.

They return every single lineman from a 2019 team that improved each week, especially the final month of the season. They also add senior Emmit Gooden, who missed all of last year with a torn ACL, back to the mix.

That’s not to say there aren’t several key contributors to replace, though.

The Vols must find more pass rushing help this spring, as the SEC’s sack leader the last two years (Darrell Taylor) is off to the NFL. Also gone is veteran safety Nigel Warrior, who played at an All-SEC level in 2019, and middle linebacker Daniel Bituli, who was desperately missed the first couple weeks of the season and led the Vols in tackles for three straight years.

The delineation of starters at the defensive line really isn’t important for Tennessee, who will once again play a heavy rotation of bodies. The Vols will also cross-train a number of lineman at both tackle and end, where the gap responsibilities change a bit but the positions are fairly interchangeable in Jeremy Pruitt’s defense.

The biggest question among the group is whether a guy like Elijah Simmons can flash enough in the spring to steal snaps from Greg Emerson or someone else in the fall. Secondly, will guys like John Mincey and Savion Williams continue to fade in the background or reinsert themselves into the rotation? Overall, it’s a good problem to have.

Conversely, the Vols have some real questions at linebacker — both inside and outside. To’oto’o is a future stud, but who plays next to him? Perhaps no one on the roster needs to showcase well over the the next two months more than JJ Peterson. With Crouch sidelined, it’s a major opportunity for the former blue-chip recruit to work with the 1s for much of camp. At outside linebacker, Bennett proved capable of playing opposite Taylor in 2019, and now he’ll take on a bigger role. Same for Deandre Johnson. But like Peterson, this is a big spring for Roman Harrison, who has an opportunity to carve out a niche as more than just a situational rusher.

With everyone back besides Warrior, the roles in the secondary are mostly defined. The top four corners (in some order) are Thompson, Taylor, Shamburger and George. It’s unlikely Buchanan will be able to do much this spring, but if he can, he’ll get a look at STAR.

Safety is a bit more interesting, although McCollough, who started the final couple games of the season, and Flowers, who was hurt for half the season, are the frontrunners for the starting jobs. Can a guy like Fields crack the rotation though? Will Jackson showcase more consistency and earn his job back?