Can Davis overcome his limitations in the NFL?
The New York Giants had an interesting problem when it came to rushing the passer in 2023. While they won their pass rushes at the 11th highest rate in the NFL, they had comparatively little to show for it. Their high win rate was due to a heavy reliance on the blitz, but the Giants struggled to finish their rushes before the ball came out.
Their new defensive scheme will rely much more heavily on a four-man pass rush, which means their Front Seven defenders will need to be that much more disruptive.
Clemson defensive tackle Tyler Davis has a distinct lack of length, however he also proved to be a disruptive player when attacking into the backfield. Would that be enough for teams to overlook his physical limitations?
Prospect: Tyler Davis (13)
Games Watched: vs. Florida State (2023), vs. Miami (2023), vs. North Carolina State (2023), vs. North Carolina (2023)
Red Flags: Undisclosed injury (2022)
Measurables
Height: 6-foot, 1 3⁄4 inches
Weight: 299 pounds
Arm length: 30 3⁄4 inches
Hand size: 9 1⁄4 inches
Strengths
- Competitive toughness
- First step
- Power
- Play strength
- 1-gap play
Tyler Davis is a compact defensive tackle prospect with a good first step, great competitive toughness, and the natural leverage to maximize his play strength.
Davis is a very experienced lineman for Clemson, having played in 55 games over the course of his collegiate career. He’s played all over the Clemson front, but is at his best when used as a one-gap defender around the B-gap. The Tigers used him as a 0 or 1-technique nose tackle on occasion, but he appears most comfortable at the 3-technique in a 4-man front or 5-technique in a 3-man TITE front.
Davis has an explosive first step, combining a powerful lower body with a good ability to anticipate and time the snap. He has a solid burst under most circumstances and can explode off the line of scrimmage when attacking individual gaps and attempting to disrupt in the backfield. He’s primarily a power rusher and looks to win with a bull-rush and half-man leverage. He also has enough quickness to and lower-body fluidity to be an effective looper, as well as the crasher, in stunts and twists.
That lower body strength allows him to be an effective run defender, holding blocks and allowing linebackers to flow to the ball.
He has great competitive toughness and consistently gives good effort throughout the play. Davis is willing to fight through multiple blockers as well as disengage and pursue ball carriers across the field.
Weaknesses
- Length
- Agility
- 2-gapping
Davis’ greatest weakness as a player is his lack of length. Not only is he short for an NFL defensive lineman at 6-foot 1 ¾ inches, he has very short arms at 30 ¾ inches. That lack of length shows up throughout his game, and is pretty consistently limiting.
Davis has a good first step, however his rushes can be slowed because offensive linemen frequently get their hands on him first. Blockers who are able to square up and lock in their blocks are often able to control Davis, making it difficult for him to disengage or win on a second effort. He has a strong lower body and can still drive defenders backward, but that can be blunted if the opposing lineman is particularly strong or plays with good leverage. Likewise, while he can hold blocks, Davis can find it difficult to make plays off of those blockers when runners challenge his gap. Nor does he have enough length to extend and put his hips in a gap to force runners to redirect.
Davis also has merely average agility for a player of his size. That can lead to a limited tackle radius and make it difficult for him to make plays on the ball in the backfield.
Game Tape
(Davis is Clemson DT number 13)
Projection
Tyler Davis projects as a rotational defensive lineman in a one-gap defense. He has enough burst and quickness to be a disruptive rusher when attacking the B-gap, as well as the ability to execute either side of a defensive line stunt (looper or occupying blockers). He’s a competitive player who gives full effort on every snap, and is a willing run defender as well as a disruptor.
However, Davis will always be limited by his length. He might simply be too lacking in that department to be an every down player at the NFL level. He could struggle significantly with long-limbed blockers who also have solid technique and athleticism. Davis shouldn’t be counted out because of his arms – a good first step, solid play strength, and good toughness are important traits in their own right – but he’ll have an uphill battle and will need to continue to learn how to minimize that weakness.
Does he fit the Giants?
No. He would fit the Giants’ scheme, but they already have depth at the position
Final Word: An early Day 3 pick
You must be logged in to post a comment Login