Redskins safety Sean Davis hopes to emulate Sean Taylor

It takes a special kind of influence to dictate the style of those who succeed you. Redskins safety Sean Taylor has posthumously achieved that influence.

Like other greats are the standards at their respective positions, Taylor is one of the golden standards at the safety position. His highlight reels of hard hits and picks have inspired young up-and-comers since his death in 2007. Sean Taylor is the epitome of the physical, dynamic defender, and in 2020, new Washington Redskins safety Sean Davis hopes to follow that archetype.

Davis is far from the first safety to come to D.C. and proclaim his idolization of Taylor. In fact, it feels almost like a rite of passage for incoming defensive backs. Dashon Goldson “always looked up to Sean Taylor”. D.J. Swearinger taped his face mask to carry on Taylor’s tradition. Landon Collins was brought to tears by a No. 21 jersey gifted to him by Dan Snyder. Davis is far from the first. But his connection to Taylor is unique.

Sean Davis played college football at Maryland. He attended Maret High School in Washington D.C. and was born in the capital city. He was a 13-year old homegrown Redskins fan when Sean Taylor made his first Pro Bowl in 2006. Davis doesn’t just idolize Taylor. He tries to emulate his hometown hero in everything he does.

“I just try to do what I’m supposed to do, but also unleash the inner beast in me and play like Sean Taylor,” Davis said in a Redskins.com article by Kyle Stackpole. “That’s my goal every week I’m out there: play like Sean.”

Davis, in the aforementioned article, asserted that Taylor’s game film “displays exactly how the free safety position should be played”. That’s the position Davis will fittingly be tasked with manning in 2020.

Davis certainly has the physical profile to play tough and fast like Taylor; he’s 6-foot-1, 202, with 4.46 speed, a 37-inch vertical, and a 126-inch broad jump. What he lacks, to this point, are the instincts and consistency traits. But he’s healthy now, and he has a stable coaching staff and supporting cast, which includes veteran Landon Collins, to glean valuable information from. He’s not the surefire starter, but he has experience which should grant him the inside track.

What’s most important, however, is that is Davis is home. Perhaps that’s where he’ll find the comfort that can elevate his game even further.