By Michael Stets
Jarrad Davis, the Lions 2017 first-round draft pick, has been making the media rounds since his arrival in Detroit after being taken 21st overall in this year’s NFL Draft. And so far he’s said all the right things while leaving a good first impression on the city.
In the past few days, he’s expressed his appreciation for owner Martha Ford, GM Bob Quinn and head coach Jim Caldwell for drafting him. Shared stories from his youth about being a nervous running back. And explained the importance of having good character. The linebacker out of Florida also admitted to being a fan of the Dallas Cowboys, drew laughs for refusing to weigh in on a Barry Sanders vs. Emmitt Smith debate, and mentioned his fondness for NFL Hall of Fame member Ray Lewis. But perhaps the biggest thing to stand out among the quotes from Davis: his thirst for violence.
At his introductory press conference last Friday, Davis said laying a vicious hit on an opponent is “an experience that is unmatched.” On Monday night, Davis was a guest on the WJR Draft Recap Show where he revisited the topic with Dan Miller.
“I have a relentless passion to be violent at the point of contact,” said Davis. “I love contact. So, it’s gonna be a little bit of old-school football out there in the D.”
Davis was regarded by experts as one of the most athletic linebackers in this year’s draft. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.56 seconds and posted a 38.5-inch vertical at Florida’s pro day, which was better than all but four defensive backs in the entire NFL Scouting Combine. A player with that kind of rare athleticism combined with an affinity to, as Davis said last week, “exert force on another player,” should be music to Lions fan’s ears.
“I play with my heart on my sleeve, “Davis said. “I kind of got that from Ray Lewis. He played with a lot of passion and a lot of fire. Just the amount of love and just sheer passion that he has for the game, I try to mirror that. I try to as much as I can.”
On the Lions’ website over the weekend, Quinn said that Davis will be playing at middle linebacker. He’s expected to step into a three-down starting role, which means he will become the Lions’ new leader on defense. Last season, the middle of the defense was manned by Tahir Whitehead, who will now likely shift to an outside role. The Lions’ linebackers struggled mightily in coverage in 2016, and Davis’ skill set will help out in that aspect considerably.
“Coverage is huge,” he said. “You gotta be able to make plays in the passing game in this league because it’s changing so much, you know? And we can stop the run all day, but if they keep hitting us down the middle or just getting short or medium routes and yards in the pass game they are going to keep moving the ball down the field.”
Davis said he doesn’t care where he plays on defense, though, and will learn all the linebacker positions to make himself more valuable to the defense.
“As far as a role, I look to come in and fill whatever role they need,” he said. “If they need me to play Mike, Will, Sam, it doesn’t matter to me. I’m going to come in and take on each and every position and try to learn it and make sure if they need me to play here I can play here. If they need me to play there I can play there. Whatever they want me to do.”
The Kingsland, Ga. native also plans on upping the level of competition throughout the entire defense, which welcomed five other 2017 draft picks including: Tennessee linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin, San Diego cornerback Jamal Agnew and college teammate, Florida cornerback Teez Tabor.
“I expect to come in come in and work extremely hard and just to be somebody who is going to create competition within the linebacker room, within the defense and within the team,” he said. “That’s all it’s really about really. Competition breeds wins, it breeds championships. So you have to always be competing.”
Davis called it an “extreme honor” to be drafted by the Lions. And said the love between himself and the organization is reciprocal.
“I guess Detroit, they were a team that bought in. They love me. So now it’s time for me to buy in and love them right back.”