Commanders news: Kirk Cousins, Jacoby Brissett, Jamin Davis and Justin Fields
By Dean Jones
Commanders' plan for Jamin Davis
This season is a pivotal one for Jamin Davis. The linebacker was recently spared jail for a reckless driving misdemeanor charge, leaving him to focus fully on imposing himself further and becoming an integral part of Dan Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr.'s defensive plans moving forward.
Unless the Commanders throw a curveball and trigger his fifth-year option, this will also be a contract season for Davis. The incentive is there to put more consistency together. According to Ben Standig from The Athletic, the former first-round pick out of Kentucky could be deployed in a hybrid role more in keeping with his athletic attributes.
"The Commanders see using the 2021 first-round linebacker more in pass-rush situations this season. The plan is to have the athletically gifted Davis become a “hybrid” defender, which should translate into less pass coverage and more attempts at getting after quarterbacks. That’s a logical consideration on many levels. Davis played his rookie season at Mike linebacker before moving to the off-ball role in Washington’s 4-2-5 base. His limited coverage instincts led to opposing coordinators attacking him with wheel-route throws to running backs almost every game. According to Pro Football Focus, Davis tied for the highest yards per catch allowed (12.1) last season and ranked fourth-worst in average depth of target (5.5)."
- Ben Standig, The Athletic
Whether this means Davis could be used similarly to Micah Parsons during Quinn's tenure with the Dallas Cowboys remains to be seen. Getting him to rush the quarterback more frequently would be beneficial, but this is dependent on the reinforcements those in power can acquire via free agency and the 2024 NFL Draft.