Jolly ol’ Davis seems ready to deck the Titans
PHILADELPHIA » As difficult as it is for Jordan Davis to slide through a crowd, the 6-foot-6, 345-pounder did just that with room to spare Thursday after his first full practice in pads in a month due to an ankle sprain.
There was no limp, no sign of pain, just a big smile on the face of the rookie first-round Eagles pick, who missed being on the field so badly he did everything his veteran teammates suggested. In a few days he’s in charge of putting up the Christmas decorations for the defensive line room.
“’Tis the season,” Davis said with a grin. “Everybody wants to have a little fun and we have a blast, man. Whether or not things shake out how way I wanted to, it’s just great to be part of the process again. You have to look at it with a little bit of gratitude. Something bad happens and you have to look at it with a positive outlook.”
The Eagles, for those with short memories, were doing just fine stopping the run with Davis playing in the middle of a five-man line. Almost the minute he twisted his ankle against the Pittsburgh Steelers the run defense had issues. The Houston Texans, Washington Commanders, Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers all have taken their swings at the Eagles, with all but the Colts enjoying much too much success.
The Tennessee Titans are another team that wants to run on the Eagles when the teams get together Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. Stopping Derrick Henry (6-3, 247), who size-wise is the Jordan Davis of running backs, would be “a great opportunity.
“But like I said, we’ve got to be smart with these things,” said Davis, who feels he’s on track to get back in the lineup this weekend. “We’re pushing it along. Rome wasn’t built in a day. It’s still a day-by-day process. But at the end of the day, just to be at practice we hit one of our benchmarks. So, tomorrow we’ll have another practice, and we’ll go full tilt. We’ll make that decision when it comes time. These things don’t go away like magic.”
Henry trails only Josh Jacobs of the Las Vegas Raiders among rushers, having run for 1,048 yards and 10 touchdowns. As Henry goes, so go the Titans. The opposition has had success lately jamming the line of scrimmage against him. The addition of nose tackle Linval Joseph and Ndamukong Suh helped initially, but not enough last week for the Eagles. Davis has a chance to show how valuable he is.
“Just being on the field now, I’ve got the opportunity to check back in,” Davis said. “And we’re playing with two new guys they brought in. Linval and Ndamukong. Literally between Robert Quinn, Linval, and I think Fletcher Cox and Suh, they’ve (each) been playing in the NFL for more than half of my lifetime. To put that in perspective that’s a lot of knowledge and a lot of experience. To be able to learn from those guys, I’m grateful for it.”
Davis is 22. Cox is in his 11th season while the others in the foursome each had 12 seasons of NFL experience entering this season.
If the Eagles activate Davis this week they’ll have to release a player, and likely scratch one of their defensive linemen on game day. The top candidate would Quinn. He’s played very little in recent weeks, just 11 snaps in the last game. The Eagles have just been unable to find a role for the veteran edge rusher.
Not so with Davis, who was a fit at nose tackle almost from the start. With Joseph showing him how it’s done, it’s going to get interesting. It’s difficult enough finding one serviceable nose. Two?
“I knew this day was coming,” Davis said. “Yeah, it’s great news. I feel great. Just being out there with the guys enjoying the game that I love, the people I love.”
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Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, out indefinitely with a lacerated kidney, was the only nonparticipant at the Eagles’ Thursday practice.
Wide receivers DeVonta Smith (groin) and Zach Pascal (groin) were limited, as were several other veterans, merely to rest.
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Earlier in the week, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said “everything is on the table” to find a solution to the weekly issues plaguing special teams.
That included moving veterans to special teams.
It’s early but short of putting people like linebackers T.J. Edwards, Kyzir White and Haason Reddick out there more, the Eagles were forced to play a bunch of vets last week due to injuries to Patrick Johnson and GardnerJohnson.
Special teams collectively has its work cut out this week as Hassan Haskins ranks fourth in the league with a 21.8 kickoff return average, and the Titans a respectable 9.7 yards on punt returns.
Additionally, rookie punter Ryan Stonehouse leads the league with a 53.1-yard average and is third overall with a net average of 44.7 yards. He’s fifth with 23 punts dropped inside the 20-yard line and has a hang time over 5.3 seconds.
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Here is how the Eagles clinch a playoff berth this week, foregone conclusion that it is (per NFLplayoffStatus.com):
Case 1: Eagles beat the Titans, 49ers lose to the Dolphins, Commanders lose to the Giants and Seahawks tie the Rams
Case 2: Eagles beat the Titans, 49ers lose to the Dolphins, Commanders lose to or tie the Giants and Seahawks lose to the Rams.
Case 3: Eagles beat the Titans, 49ers tie the Dolphins, Commanders lose to the Giants and Seahawks lose to the Rams.
A bit early to zero in on the No. 1 seed clinching options but many of those outcomes are completely doable this weekend.