How Jamin Davis is progressing entering his second season
Checking in on the development of second-year linebacker Jamin Davis
It’s fair to say that linebacker Jamin Davis had a disappointing rookie campaign. He struggled to adjust to the speed of the NFL game and his task wasn’t made easier by trying to play the Mike (middle) linebacker role instead of his more natural fit as the Will (weak side) linebacker. He was noticeably slow off the snap during preseason last year and that carried on into the regular season. He didn’t last long as the Mike and eventually shifted back outside, but he still looked slow to read plays and fit the run. Davis played just over 50% of the total defensive snaps last year, which obviously isn’t ideal from a first-round pick.
Davis’ development entering his second season is key to how his career arc could play out. If he doesn’t show some progress this year, then he will start to look like a missed pick that was drafted on athletic ability rather than football ability. But if he can take a step forward, then the Commanders will feel positive that the time taken to develop that football ability will pay off as the athleticism helps him reach a higher ceiling than other linebackers in his draft class. So how has Davis played so far in preseason? Let’s take a closer look.
The standout aspect of his play has been his play speed. Davis is playing noticeably faster than he did at this point last year. Last season he was often frozen at the snap, trying to process the information in front of him instead of reacting naturally. This year, Davis has played a lot faster in general, which has led to some positive plays.
This play comes from the preseason opener against Carolina. The Panthers look to run an iso scheme known as lead weak, with the left guard and center looking to open the gap between them and the fullback inserting to create an extra gap in there. The hope is that they can cut off the other linebackers and isolate Davis on the fullback so that whichever shoulder Davis plays, the back can adjust his run to the other side. However, Davis reads the play very quickly. As soon as the ball is snapped, he triggers towards the line of scrimmage. This speed allows him to quickly meet the fullback in the backfield, before the fullback is able to get to the line of scrimmage. As he initiates contact, Davis does well to get low and under the blocker, standing him up and driving him back on impact. With the fullback blown up, the running back has no choice but to look to bounce his run outside instead of staying on his original path. By bouncing outside, he works into Jonathan Allen’s gap, who with the assistance of safety Darrick Forrest makes the tackle.
Against the Chiefs, Davis had a similar play in terms of speed of reaction.
This time, the Chiefs look to run an inside zone scheme with a jet sweep fake and a sifting tight end to try and give the linebackers some extra things to read. However, Davis reacts well off the snap. He straight away steps forward towards the line of scrimmage and smartly falls back a gap after he reads the tight end sifting. This allows him to work behind the center, who is helping the right guard on a combination block against Phidarian Mathis. Davis shoots the gap and works straight into the backfield, where he meets the running back and makes the tackle.
These are encouraging signs for Davis going forward. He’s playing a lot faster which means he’s not getting reached by lineman climbing up to meet him at the second level, instead he’s taking on blockers at the line of scrimmage and working into the backfield. However, it’s clear he still has plenty of work to do, especially on some of the smaller details of fitting the run.
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