40. Marlon Davidson, DL, Auburn
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 303
40-Yard Dash: 5.04
Bench Press: 21 reps
Vertical Jump: N/A
Broad Jump: N/A
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
60-Yard Shuttle: N/A
Bio: A four-star recruit, Davidson chose Auburn over Alabama in his home state and saw action as a true freshman with 38 tackles, six tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks. He could have left Auburn for the NFL after his junior season in 2018, but kept a promise to his late mother that he would finish school and get his degree. It was a wise move in more ways than one, as Davidson topped out with 11.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks.
“Naw, man,” Davidson said at the combine, when asked if his rookie year in the NFL would be like freshman year at Auburn. “Because of the way I approach the film room. It’s totally different. I study my opponent before my opponent even knows it. Take details from that details from coaching tendencies. There is always the 10-play rule. The first 10 are always going to be off the wall no matter what. Then they will get back to who there are. At the end of the day, coaches are going to have tendencies, favorite formations. Just learn them.”
Stat to Know: Last season, Davidson played six snaps over the A-gap, 62 over the B-gap, 114 over the tackle, and 406 outside the tackle.
Strengths: Has no issue lining up everywhere along the defensive line, and attacks different gaps with different tools. Brings a fearsome bull-rush, active hands, and nice balance on the edge. Inside, he adds a really nice ability to stack and shed blockers with his upper-body strength and sustaining ability through the play. Accelerates to the back half of the pocket once he gets going. Didn’t take major reps on run downs last season (51%, per NFL.com) but has the power and short-area closing speed to be an excellent run defender over time.
Weaknesses: For a guy with his upper-body strength, Davidson could be even tougher to deal with if he learned to play consistently with a wide base and adjust his feet with his movement. Finds himself on the ground too often on the outside; he’s not a naturally agile mover. Doesn’t yet show the arm-over and rip moves that would make a guy with his body type into a more consistent weapon. Isn’t going to work the arc — there’s not a lot of dip-and-rip here. Davidson is going to get to the pocket straight on. Benefited from Derrick Brown’s presence a lot.
Conclusion: You hear less and less in today’s NFL about “tweeners,” players who aren’t quite adept enough at one position, but don’t fit into any other in a definitive sense. The new need for positional versatility has coaches and coordinators working harder to make such players into productive assets. But Davidson could find himself as a true tweener if he’s asked to work too much at end.
NFL Comparison: Javon Hargrave. The Steelers took Hargrave out of South Carolina State in the third round of the 2016 draft, put him inside the tackles for the most part, and were rewarded with an underrated disruptive weapon. Davidson could be a similar force if he bulks up a bit and works from the center’s outside shoulder to the tackle’s inside shoulder.