Rookie accepts playoff challenge
Davis was being swarmed and congratulated by teammates after breaking up the 2-point conversion pass for wide receiver Jeremy Maclin. The Steelers offense then ran out the clock.
“The moment wasn’t too big for him,” Mike Tomlin said of Davis.
A well-timed conversation with Tomlin while Conley was receiving medical attention put Davis’ mind at ease.
“I told him, ‘My fault. I didn’t mean to do that. I don’t want to hurt anybody,’ ” Davis said. “He told me, ‘Just relax and play ball. Don’t worry about it. Don’t blink. Don’t freak out. You live to fight another down.’ ” Good listener, Davis. “I guess it was just my time to make a play,” he said of foiling the 2-point try. “I wasn’t nervous. I was just playing ball.”
Not bad for a kid, a rookie, just 23. Davis has come a long way in a short time. Go back to the Dallas game Nov. 13. He didn’t get a chance to atone for his mistake that day. His face-mask penalty on tight end Jason Witten in the final minute led to the Cowboys’ 35-30 win.
“I was just trying to get him down, trying to poke the ball out or just grab something,” Davis said after the game.
Tomlin had Davis’ back after that loss, as well. He put him in the starting lineup for the first time the next week at Cleveland. The Steelers haven’t lost since. That’s nine wins in a row, if you aren’t counting.
“I feel like I’m growing,” Davis said. “I’m playing my role and trying to make the plays when they come to me.”
It’s not just Davis. Rookies Artie Burns and Javon Hargrave also are starting on defense. Young players Stephon Tuitt, Ryan Shazier and Bud Dupree are showing why they were high draft choices and lessening the criticism directed at Tomlin and Kevin Colbert for their evaluation skills. Of course, the old guys — James Harrison and Lawrence Timmons — haven’t been bad, either. The defense held the Chiefs to 227 yards, limiting the damage by stars Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill.
“We’re just playing good team ball right now,” Ross Cockrell said. “We understand what the standard is here. That’s what we try to represent. We want a chance to go to the big game.”
The Steelers are one win from Super Bowl LI. Can you blame Davis if he has a hard time believing it? Here he is, a rookie starting on a team in the AFC championship, playing a major role. You could feel his joy Sunday night. It was palpable. His right shoulder, which has been a problem the past few weeks, was wrapped in ice, but he clearly wasn’t feeling any pain.
“It keeps getting better and better, crazier and crazier,” Davis said. “I can’t wish for anything better. I love my team. I love what we’re doing. We’re a team on the rise.”
By now, Davis and the others have started serious preparations for the explosive New England offense. The pressure will build all week. Davis thought lining up against the Chiefs in Arrowhead was surreal? There’s nothing like facing the great, four-time SuperBowl-winner Tom Brady in Gillette Stadium.
It’s worth repeating, right? “I am not afraid of NFL playoff ball.” Tomlin and the Steelers are counting on it.