May 23, 2013

NFL Draft: A Little More on James Davis

April 28, 2009 by 20 Comments

james-davis-clemsonI know that a lot of Browns fans were upset when the team passed up on a few running backs of choice this past weekend.  The second day of the draft is typically full of players that are relatively unknown, so the lack of sexiness that ultimately leads to second-guessing is understandable.

Alas, I’m hoping that Scout.com’s recent 2009 NFL Draft Superlatives make you feel at least a little bit better about our sixth-round selection.

Best Sixth Round Pick

James Davis, RB, Clemson (Cleveland Browns)

This was an outstanding pick by the Browns. Grabbing James Davis was smart and it gives Cleveland a solid running back that they can eventually turn their running game over to, especially since Jamal Lewis is getting a little older and his production dipped last season. The misconception is that Davis has a lot of tread on his wheels, because he’s a big back. But the fact that he never had over 214 carries in a season and shared time with C.J. Spiller over the last few seasons makes Davis fresh, and he could have an instant impact.

We mentioned that we liked Davis yesterday, and this should only add to the attention that he’ll receive as we head into camp.  He attended the same high school as Jamal Lewis, and was slated to go anywhere between the third and sixth rounds.  Leaving Clemson with the second-highest rushing total in school history isn’t exactly a bad thing.

It’s looking like he’ll have to battle Noah Herron for the third running back slot.  Given his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, don’t count him out as that change-of-pace guy as the season progresses.

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2009 NFL Draft Superlatives [Chris Steubner/Scout.com]

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  • http://www.waitingfornextyear.com/ Rick

    And he’s used to wearing orange, so we’ve got that going for us…

  • http://www.waitingfornextyear.com Denny

    This headline could read: “A little moron, James Davis”

  • creative

    James Davis will take over for jamal by the end of this year

  • Kunal

    here’s your video game reference for the day

    when i imported the 09 draft class from ncaa 09 to madden 09, james davis was a 1st round pick and after a couple years was the best running back in the game.

    really doesn’t have any bearing on real life, but just thought i’d throw in my two cents

  • Chris M

    I’m curious as to why the dramatic dropoff in his numbers between his junior and senior year. Last year he only had a few solid games, one of them being against Citadel. Of course, if he had a huge year, he wouldn’t have fallen to the 6th round. I’m just curious as to what happened.

  • Gabriel

    Interesting….

  • Harv 21

    Love that they waited until the 6th to pick up an RB, where the chances of getting a stud back are certainly better than picking up a stud left tackle.

    BTW, just found a 2006 pre-draft analysis from NFL.com I had kep for some reason (ok, reason being I’m a sports nerd). Their report on Kamerion Wimbley (13th overall pick) include predictions that:
    – ” … is no doubt going to be drafted much higher than ranked because of his flashes of production … but he will struggle to ever become as consistently productive as he is physically capable of.”
    – “Despite having very good natural exposiveness, he does not sense/anticipate the snap well and is almost the last defensive lineman moving at the snap, which will keep him from being able to threaten the corner as a speed/edge rusher consistently in the NFL.
    – “He makes most of his plays when unblocked or blocked by a tight end/running back and struggles to make plays v. offensive tackle blocks.”
    There is much more, some of which is eerily accurate. I know a lot of these scouting analyses are for crap, but this one is just prescient.

  • Harv 21

    p.s.: editors, sorry above is off topic of Davis. Just wanted to share that.

  • MrCleaveland

    Fear the elf.

  • nbluck

    Love this pick. Has good vision and a solid burst. If he wasn’t sharing the backfield with Spiller the last few years, he would have gotten a lot more media coverage (and better stats for that matter).

  • mgbode

    @5 Clemson OL was terrible this past year. It was their biggest ? going into the season and killed them against any decent opponent.

    J. Davis main concern is if the good blocking he got before last year was why he was a good runner or if the horrible OL last year was the sole reason for the slip in #’s. Most likely somewhere in between.

  • http://www.waitingfornextyear.com Denny

    Clemson OL was terrible this past year. It was their biggest ? going into the season and killed them against any decent opponent.

    And how is that different from the Browns? Just sayin..

  • b

    he was a monster So./Jr. years, projected 2nd or 3rd rounder had he come out after Jr. season. But if your line and passing game failsyou, your numbers will crash. i think we got a good talent here. here’s a hint to JD though, run to the left.

  • Bridgecrosser

    I like Jamal Lewis but if you think he’s going to be cool about losing carries and handles it gracefully, SORRY – AINT HAPPENIN….

  • sambofromOH

    I agree with you Bridgecrosser. Why did he leave Baltimore? He felt like he was losing carries because the team was passing too much.

  • Nicko

    Jamal left the Ravens because the Browns offered him more money.

  • b

    i think or would hope that jamal realizes he’s on the downswing of his career and that splitting carries could actually extend said career. also may help that davis went to the same HS as lewis. maybe he will view this as an ideal torch passing opportunity.

  • paulbip

    Lewis is washed up.

  • Tim

    If you are wondering why he had such a drop off from his junior year to his senior year, we at Clemson had his junior year a senior laden offensive line. Now his senior year, it was freshmen and sophs, so he had no experience to run behind. Also our qb was playing bad, so every team stacked the line on us. Oh and our coach and OC were fired half way through the season. Davis is a beast, and will be great for the Browns, he is consistent, and can break tackles, and rarely fumbles.

  • Rita Johnson

    James, I’ve watched you grow since your 8th grade alegbra class. I’ve cheered you on in every step of the way. However, I’ve been interested in your civic interest. Please let me personally know if you are involved in any way with community growth and engagements as far as foundations etc. I would love to help you in this area. We remember great things about you at Turner. Let me know.

    Your Eighth Grade Math Teacher,

    Miss Rita Johnson