In a bit of a surprise, junior tackle Bobby Brown announced Saturday that he would skip his senior season and was declaring for the 2021 NFL Draft. In a social media post, Brown cited the medical condition of his mother as the primary reason for his decision.

A pre-season All-SEC selection, Brown proved he was more than up to the hype with an outstanding 2020 campaign. He tallied 22 tackles, but 7.5 of those were tackles for loss along with a team-high 5.5 sacks. Brown had at least a half-sack in six consecutive games, the longest streak for an Aggie defensive lineman since Damontre Moore in 2012. He was a first-team All-SEC selection at the end of the year.

For his career, the 6-foot-4, 325-pound Brown racked up 57 tackles, 10.5 TFL and 6 sacks.

It's always tough to lose a first-team All-SEC player, but if there's a position where A&M can handle such a departure with minimal difficulty, it's at defensive tackle. The Aggies will still have a whole lot of depth at the position in 2021.

The return of Jayden Peevy for another year helped stabilize the position, and the senior could well be a preseason All-SEC pick. Next to Peevy (34 tackles, 5 TFL, 1 sack this past season) will be McKinnley Jackson, who tallied 13 tackles, 2.5 TFL and 1.5 sacks in a freshman All-SEC campaign. Jackson showed flashes of dominance in 2020 and is poised for a big year with more snaps.

Behind Peevy and Jackson will be plenty of size and talent. Adarious Jones will return from an ACL injury, rejoining Derick Hunter as big bodies from the 2019 class. There will also be two other massive young men from 2020, Isaiah Raikes (who played in six games) and Dallas Walker IV. Freshmen Marcus Burris and Albert Regis will also join the group, which should mean a lot of quality competition to fill out the two-deep behind Peevy and Jackson.