Following Sunday’s loss to the Detroit Lions, Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera remained critical of linebacker Jamin Davis. Rivera called Davis “inconsistent” and noted the 2021 first-round draft pick was “running out of time” to get better.
Rivera had a changed tune Wednesday when assessing the play of Davis against the Lions.
The old adage is the film don’t lie. And that’s the case here with Davis.
Davis had four tackles and a sack in Washington’s 36-27 loss to Detroit. Even on the insane touchdown by Lions running back D’Andre Swift, Davis applied the pressure that led to the off-balanced pass from Jared Goff.
Rivera seemingly fed into the narrative when he called out Davis in the postgame scrum. Maybe he was trying to back his defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio. Del Rio was the first to call out Davis, calling his Week 1 performance “so-so.”
Coincidentally, Davis appeared to respond to his coaches’ wave of criticism with a since-deleted Instagram post.
Davis’ development has been slow. He didn’t catch on as a rookie at the Mike linebacker, a position he didn’t play in college at Kentucky. This year, he moved back to his natural position at Will.
Davis struggled in Week 1 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. There’s no doubt about it. But, Rivera was irresponsible for rushing to judgment right after the game against the Lions.
Davis will have a huge opportunity to prove himself Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is a dual threat with the run and pass. How Davis plays may go a long way into the Commanders defending of the potent Eagles offense.
