The best part of every preseason in the NFL is that there are always a few unknown names who break out in these somewhat-meaningless games to go from roster cuts to impact players who can potentially save a season. These games are where stars like former New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz made a name for themselves.
Similar to Cruz, Trevor Davis of the Green Bay Packers is making a strong case as to why the team should allow him to not only make the roster, but also potentially earn a big role as a do-it-all receiver for the Packers.
As NFL rosters have to be cut down to 53 players by the end of this weekend, Davis has taken it upon himself this preseason to make sure that he is one of those 53 players.
In the Packers' recent trip to Canada to play the Oakland Raiders in their third preseason game, Davis made Winnipeg his wonderland, as the former California Golden Bear caught five passes for 78 yards with a 13-yard touchdown.
Catching passes from his quarterback wasn't the only way Davis was able to make an impact on the field, as Davis was also able to pick up 18 yards on an end around and 17 yards on a punt return, making him a versatile weapon in Green Bay's offense. Davis did the most with his time with the ball, as with his seven touches he managed to total 113 yards and a score, which is about as efficient as it gets.
This solid performance was much needed for Davis, who was in danger of getting cut from the roster after missing the previous two weeks of practice with an injury during the team's Aug. 5 joint practice with the Houston Texans. Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur was happy to see Davis making an impact in this game after all the hard work he put into practice prior to his injury.
“It was just cool to see him carry over from practice to the game,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said to Jason Wilde of the Winona Daily News. “He’d been out for awhile now, so we gave him a decent amount of plays. (Plus) he was playing on special teams. I think you have to get him back into football shape, because it looked like he started getting a little tired toward the end there.”
Boasting a wide receiving core of Davante Adams, Geronimo Allison, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Jake Kumerow, Davis can become an X-Factor for this offense. A unit that once featured big names like Jordy Nelson and Greg Jennings is lacking the star power it was once notorious for, allowing players like Davis to get more snaps and get more comfortable with superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Davis has posted good, yet not great return numbers over the past three seasons. In 29 total games and 72 total returns, Davis has managed to average 12.1 yards per punt return while also returning the ball 22.6 yards on average on kickoffs. These numbers don't jump off the page, but the potential he flashed this preseason prove that these consistent totals are likely to go up.
While it would be nice for Packers fans to see Davis have as impressive of a performance as he had against Oakland more than once, just that potential to be the X-Factor on offense makes him worthy of a roster spot, even if he is fifth on the wide receiver depth chart right now.
Guys like Jeff Janis, Randall Cobb, and the previously mentioned former Packers receivers have become famous names in Titletown by forming chemistry with Rodgers and being threats in multiple ways on offense.
Davis has the potential to be that “next man up” for the Packers and if he can mesh well with Rodgers and continue to excel in the return game, he might as well be penciled in now as Green Bay's 2019 X-Factor on offense.
Follow Us
Subscribe