Los Angeles Chargers undrafted rookie spotlight: Michael Davis
By Travis Wakeman
The Los Angeles Chargers are well on their way to building one of the league’s most feared secondaries.
Recognizing the recent success that teams such as the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos have had my making the defensive backfield the strongest positional unit on the team, the Chargers are following suit.
With Jason Verrett and last year’s interception leader Casey Hayward at the cornerback spots, the team also re-signed hard-hitting safety Jahleel Addae before drafting both Rayshawn Jenkins and Desmond King. If that wasn’t enough, the team also added three more cornerbacks to the roster by way of the undrafted free-agent process.
I already profiled Wake Forest’s Brad Watson in the undrafted rookie spotlight series and today, I look at the emerging Michael Davis.
Name: Michael Davis
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 196 pounds
School: BYU
According to Jeff Call of Deseret News, Davis ran a 4.43 40-yard dash at the BYU pro day, which would have the best second-best number posted by any cornerback at the scouting combine.
Davis was a solid defensive player for the Cougars, but he did get himself into a bit of hot water while at the school.
In 2015, he was charged with misdemeanor assault during an altercation. According to Jay Drew of the Salt Lake Tribune, that charged was later reduced. Davis was ordered to pay a small fine and complete community service while also serving a year on probation.
Though the charge didn’t amount to much, many NFL teams are leery of players having any kind of troubled history and that likely led, at least in part, to Davis going undrafted.
He certainly hasn’t let his draft status deter him in recent workouts, however. As pointed out by Ricky Henne of the team’s official website, Davis has caught the attention of head coach Anthony Lynn.
“To me, he’s prototypical for anybody’s defense. He’s 6-3, (runs under) 4.4, has length. I think he was a really good pick up for us. We’ll see when we get the pads on and (play) real football. But right now, he’s really standing out”, said Lynn.
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Born in Glendale, California, signing with the Chargers was likely an easy decision for Davis to make. The fact that he can now slide into a defense ran by Gus Bradley also makes sense.
“Most people look at me and think I am tall and lanky. They don’t think guys that look like me are fast. I use that to my advantage. They think if they give me a quick move I’ll be done. But usually if they give me a quick move, I’m right there next to them stride for stride. (After the draft,) this was the best place for me to play. Other teams were giving me opportunities, but nothing like I had if I came here. I saw the Jaguars drafted Jalen Ramsey (when Bradley was there), and he is big and fast like me. So I’m trying to show what I can do, and hopefully I can have more practices (like Tuesday’s)”, exclaimed Davis.
He’ll be behind guys such as Craig Mager, Trevor Williams and Trovon Reed. He’ll also have to compete with Watson, Brandon Stewart, Randall Evans and Ryan Reid as all of those guys look to earn backup roles. But none of those guys have drawn the kind of praise from Lynn that Davis has so far, so the young player from Glendale may already have a leg up in the competition.