Tag: pressures

Chiefs have allowed fifth-most pressures this season per PFF

The offensive line has some work to do in Kansas City.

If you thought that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was under constant siege during Week 2, you’re right. The Chiefs’ offensive line struggled to protect Mahomes from a ruthless Los Angeles Chargers pass rush that features talents like Joey Bosa, Melvin Ingram, Jerry Tillery and Uchenna Nwosu. Struggled actually might be an understatement when you consider the facts.

After a solid performance, allowing just eight pressures in Week 1 against the Houston Texans, Kansas City allowed over four times as many pressures in Week 2. Their current total in pressures on the season is 42, which good for the fifth-most in the NFL according to Pro Football Focus. They land just behind the Texans, New York Giants, Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos, who are all 0-2 on the season.

Andy Reid spoke a bit about the challenge that his offensive line faced in Week 2 following the game.

“They’ve got a great defensive front, I mean that’s what they have,” Reid said of the Chargers. “The one thing our guys did is they kept battling right down to the end and when we needed big plays, we were able to get big plays. We were able to protect and allow Patrick (Mahomes) to pop out and run. Those were also big things there. I just thought the guys reached down and battled.”

The silver lining is that this team is 2-0 on the season. Against the Chargers, they managed to block well on the plays that counted the most and helped the team win the game. However, the type of pressure that Mahomes faced on Sunday is unsustainable. With another great defense coming up with the Baltimore Ravens in Week 3, the veteran leaders on the offensive line will have to dig deep and help get this unit back on the right track.

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Marcus Davenport’s goal for 2020? Outplay Cameron Jordan

New Orleans Saints defensive end Marcus Davenport has a simple goal for 2020: outplay Cameron Jordan, the All-Pro who had 15.5 sacks in 2019

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Expectations are high for Marcus Davenport. The big defensive end has fought through injuries early in his New Orleans Saints career, slowed by a critical turf toe issue in 2018 before getting sidelined with a Lisfranc break in 2019.

Despite those setbacks, he only needs to log seven sacks in 2020 to crack the Saints’ top-20 sack leaders in franchise history. He bagged six sacks in 13 games last year, and has already notched more of them in first two years put together (10.5) than the superstar lining up opposite him: Cameron Jordan, who racked up nine sacks between his first two seasons.

Davenport has taken what Jordan’s taught him and ran with it. The two got closer during the long offseason while rehabbing injuries (Davenport had his foot issue, while Jordan dealt with post-season surgery), spending a lot of time in the trainer’s room, and Davenport took Jordan’s lessons to heart.

“I had the chance to be around Cam and you know, watch how he works. And so my goal is, shoot, I’m trying to be better than Cam,” Davenport said in a media conference call. Obviously he’s one of the best and I think that’s a good goal, try to model (after him). I would say my aspirations (are) to just try to be better. He always says ‘1% better each day’ and so if I can do better than Cam, I’m doing something right.”

Jordan had a personal-best 15.5 sacks of his own in 2019, so that’s quite a lofty goal to chase. And Davenport knows that. But the 23-year old already understands that the NFL season is a marathon, not a sprint, and day-to-day consistency is what will help win the day.

He continued: “I just say better than Cam when I just talk about statistics. I tell Cam I always want one more sack than he has. And so when I think of it as like more of a competition. That’s a driving force always present.”

If nothing else, that’s some serious motivation. And Davenport achieving anything close to Jordan’s production would be tremendous. He started the 2019 season on pace to create nearly 100 quarterback pressures, and still showed great growth over his rookie-year performance. If Davenport’s body recovers well, he just might be able to beat his own sky-high expectations.

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Marcus Davenport named Saints’ most improved player of 2019

New Orleans Saints defensive end Marcus Davenport was named the team’s most improved player of 2019 by the analysts at Pro Football Focus.

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The New Orleans Saints needed a big jump in production from Marcus Davenport to justify the bold move to acquire their 2018 first-round pick, and he came through in his second season. Davenport was a force in 2019, and earned recognition from the analysts at Pro Football Focus as last year’s most improved Saints player:

The Saints’ decision to trade up to select Davenport was met with some derision at the time of the 2018 NFL Draft. Some of that may still be warranted, but for his part, Davenport is working to show that he was worth it. After a 2018 season in which he earned a 69.7 overall grade, buoyed by strong play in run defense, Davenport saw significant improvement in his second season. His pass-rush win rate rose from 13.5% to 18.4%, and he increased his raw pressure count from 28 in his rookie season to 50 last year despite missing the end of the season with an injury. Davenport also increased his run-defense grade from 76.2 to 82.4. He and Cameron Jordan form a dangerous edge duo in New Orleans.

Much of that lines up with what we’ve seen through Davenport’s first two years as a pro. His rare combination of size, strength, and speed has allowed the big defensive end to play like a naturally strong run defender, but tutelage under Jordan has done a lot to refine his game. But the Saints drafted Davenport with the expectation that he’ll grow into a serious threat as a pass rusher, and the results he showed in his second year speak for themselves. Here’s hoping he can get and stay healthy in year three.

It’ts interesting to compare Davenport’s career arc so far to similar players around the league. One of those would be Jadeveon Clowney, who the Houston Texans selected first overall back in 2014 (the Saints invested two first-round picks in Davenport in the 2018 NFL Draft). They’re both gifted athletes, with Clowney measuring at 6-foot-5, 255 pounds and Davenport towering at 6-foot-6, 265 pounds, and they’ve each dealt with serious injuries early in their careers.

Clowney was limited to just 17 games in 2014 and 2015, notching 47 combined tackles (11 for loss of yards) to go with 4.5 sacks and 8 quarterback hits. Compare that to Davenport, who’s played 26 games from 2018 to 2019 while amassing 53 combined tackles (11 for loss), as well as 10.5 sacks and 28 hits. Davenport has also forced four fumbles in that time, while Clowney didn’t produce his first turnover until his third season.

While the Lisfranc injury that Davenport suffered last season is very serious and should be the focus of his offseason, it’s worth noting that his overall trajectory is very much trending up. This is something that he can overcome, and he should only continue to develop into a more well-rounded player with more experience. Here’s hoping for a thorough and speedy recovery.

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