Defensive tackle Jordan Davis #90 of the Philadelphia Eagles warms up before the NFL game
A big story going into this season is the conditioning of Jordan Davis. In his rookie year he failed to make much of an impact, and eventually saw the Eagles sign Linval Joseph and Ndamukong Suh to supplant him. In year 2, he got much more playing time and looked great at first. We saw that playing time take it’s toll with him falling off a cliff late in the season.
So the question is, did he come to camp in better condition this year? Will Jordan Davis be able to hold up over a full season?
We may not know the real answer to that until December when we see how he holds up late into the season. But from what we can tell now, he is on the right track. That is not me saying that, his defensive coordinator is saying the same thing. Vic Fangio was asked about Davis and had nothing but praise for him and Jalen Carter.
“I thought they looked good… Jordan showed some good movement ability, and was able to bend his move in ways I haven’t seen before, so it is encouraging right now.”
How Much Weight Should We Put In Fangio’s Praise of Jordan Davis?
(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Those are nice comments, but is it just a coach praising one of his players? With Vic Fangio we can probably take it at face value. Tim McManus joined us later in the same day, and explained why Fangio’s brutal honesty about other players, makes him more inclined to believe Fangio when he heaps praise on Jordan Davis.
“When he says something positive, you take it at face value. He doesn’t pump people up if they aren’t doing well. If they are, he will let you know about it, and I think you can accept that…. What I saw today was encouraging from Davis, there was one play where he flushed Hurts out, stayed stride for stride with him, and forced an incompletion.” -Tim McManus
McManus also told us about a play where David plugged the gap to stop Saquon Barkley in his tracks. Obviously there is no tackling, put he put himself in position to make a big play.
Trust What Vic Fangio Says
Vic Fangio straight up told us that it is really hard for corners to transition to safety when asked about James Bradberry. When asked about Bryce Huff, he pretty much told us he is not ready yet to be an every down player. He did not nice up his comments about other players. While those comments might worry us about those other players, they should make us feel better about Jordan Davis.
(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
Fangio is not someone who will lie to cover for a player. He was very honest with every question asked. So when he said Davis is bending well, and looks good, believe it.
Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter might be the most important players on this defense. Last year, when those two played well, the defense was actually getting by. It was not until they fell off a cliff that the defense fell apart.
If they can play like they did in the first 11 games last season, this will at the very least be a passable defense. The Eagles are relying on them a ton. So to hear Fangio be so postive about them, is a great sign.
Again, we need to see it over a full season. Doing it in camp is nice, but he did it in camp, and for 11 weeks last season. But we know what happened after that.
That said, they are doing the right things, and are on the right track. That is one of the best things we have seen so far in camp. Those two player will decide how good the Eagles defense is.
Dylan MacKinnon is The Digital Content Coordinator For 97.5 The Fanatic. he has been an Eagles, Flyers, Sixers, and Flyers fan his whole life. He graduated from Rutgers University with a Bachelors in Journalism. Dylan has worked at the Fanatic since 2016, starting as an Intern, moving to the Street team, and eventually was hired as an Associate Producer before settling into his current role in the Digital Department. You may hear him referred to on-air as "The D-Train."
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