Good info thanks. I’d be curious to see how much experience the comparable returners have. I feel that’s an area worthy of comparing because most guys don’t peak at a position for a few years. Wasn’t last year his first full year as our #1 guy? I might be wrong here also? It could be premature to assume he’s peaked and on an immediate decline.
Allow me to say that it’s noticeable we often look for a player scapegoat for our teams problems whenever we’re not performing. In a performing year its likely were not even having this conversation.
As an example, I don’t think having Cobb returning punts would’ve changed the outcome of one game in 2018. MVS or Breeland could be an option but ones raw and the other has been fighting injury. Taking it a step further, if we took the position of replacing Davis I don’t feel in the short term it has any significant bearing on our punt return game. I’ve been watching our ST unit and the only other guy who’s been decent in the last several years was Micah Hyde and I sometimes wonder if he wasn’t overused at times and stretched too thin.
In general the biggest thing that sticks out to me as derogatory as far as ST are unnecessary and undisciplined fouls. I can think of at minimum 2 in recent history that erased Davis’ returns where he went pass the 50 yard line.. IMO his most recent one was a game changer because instead of starting in opponent territory we started inside our own 15 yard line and stalled and that was likely lost points in a close game. Davis had absolutely no fault in that, but yet his stat suffered for a foul that he had no part in.
theres also another side of ST were conveniently ignoring. The ability to play the opposite role of gunner or coverage guy. I’m watching Davis in his limited time this year he’s been one of our better cover guys and that has surprised me considering his previously noted small physical stature. For a guy that supposedly “afraid” to get hit.. he’s laid wood on opposing returners as recently as last week. That doesn’t fit the mold or smell test of the some others recent accusations of him being reluctant to play ball. Once a thief always a thief.. if someone has a character trait.. they generally don’t turn it off and on like a switch and even if they did they’ll be “had” sooner than later.
Just like recently, if we judge Aaron Rodgers by one facet of his game such as throwaways? We’d be severely in error of making a false generalization IMO. We can find fault with anyone on this team if we look hard enough.
I’m defending him and asserting that we need to give the guy the opportunity to improve before we pull a Casey Hayward and regret watching Trevor successfully field punts for a rival.
