The Georgia Bulldogs have the best defense in the nation and NFL Draft prospect Jordan Davis is a huge reason why. Here’s who he could be in the NFL.
It’s not every day you see a defensive lineman the size of Jordan Davis. It’s even rarer to see a player his size perform as well as he has. But then again, Davis isn’t just anyone. This kid can really play.
At 6’6” and 340 pounds, Davis is a behemoth in the middle of the Georgia Bulldogs’ defense. Despite his massive frame, Davis moves remarkably well and is projected to run a sub-five-second forty-yard dash, according to DraftScout.com.
As you can imagine for a player his size, Davis isn’t going to be lighting it up in the stat sheet. Through his first three years with the Bulldogs, Davis earned a combined 5.0 sacks and 6.5 tackles for a loss over 27 games, via Sports Reference. While his production has been much better this year (1.5 sacks and 3.0 tackles for a loss in 6 games), Davis is never going to be a big box score guy. However, that doesn’t mean that he’s not worth his weight in gold.
Why Davis is a rare NFL Draft prospect
Davis is unmovable at the point of attack and often requires two interior offensive linemen to keep him from collapsing the pocket. His strength, frame, and long arms make it so almost nothing gets past him.
It’s largely because of this that Georgia’s defense has surrendered just 2.2 yards per carry and 64 total rushing yards per game to their opponents so far in 2021 — a number that is almost unheard of in college football. Because Davis is able to help his team completely shut down one entire phase of the game, the Bulldogs have surrendered just 6.6 points per game to their opponents this year.
Watching the dominance of Jordan Davis reminds me of a bigger version of former Carolina Panthers first-round pick, Derrick Brown. Brown has been an excellent run defender in the early going and has helped transform Carolina’s defense.
A more old-school comparison for Davis is former Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle, John Henderson. At 6’7” and 335 pounds, Henderson has a similar frame and play style. Henderson earned two Pro Bowls and was part of some very strong Jacksonville defenses in the early 2000s.
After taking his game to another level this season, Jordan Davis is on the fast track to be an early first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, and teams will no doubt look past his lack of collegiate production and see how dominant he is as a run defender on tape.
It takes a whole committee of great players to hold opposing teams to under 7 points per game, but it starts with the big man up front. Jordan Davis is an old-school, hard-nosed football player who should have a long NFL career clogging up running lanes.