NFL Draft 2018 Scouting Report: DE Marcus Davenport, UTSA

*Our DL grades can and will change as more information comes in from Pro Day workouts, leaked Wonderlic test results, etc. We will update ratings as new info becomes available.

I’m not alone in thinking Marcus Davenport might be the best EDGE rusher/4-3 DE prospect in this draft…that’s not a fresh take, but it’s where we are at with him – not as good as Bradley Chubb in July 2018, but might be from July 2019 on.

The raw skills/athleticism/size are tantalizing. 6’5.6”/264 with long (33 5/8”) arms…he’s going to be a menace just from a height/throwing past or over him standpoint. Add to that high-end 4.58 40-time speed and 7.20 three-cone…and you have a DE prospect created in a lab, of sorts.

There have been some DE prospects in the past as tall/quick, etc., as Davenport but their real impact (or not) in the NFL usually comes down to technique and effort.

I’ve seen too many talented DE prospects who just try to speed past their blocker and when they don’t get past them -- they just give up/stand there and watch the play. Davenport is different…consistently on his tape you’ll see Davenport in constant motion trying to get in on plays. He’s such a fluid athlete that he just kind glides like a prize-winning race horse around the field. You’re getting a player here who is going to make 1-2-3 extra plays a game because he didn’t give up.

Technique-wise is where Davenport’s flaws lie…but technique is something that can be trained, worked on and acquired. Davenport’s tape is filled with him basically just trying to be faster and stronger, but mostly faster, than his blockers…and too many times the better blockers held him up long enough to keep him from wrecking the play. His speed and power are to be reckoned with and make him an instant starter in the NFL, but he’ll become truly great once/if he adds more moves to get to the QB.

His lack of technique is what hurt him at the Senior Bowl early on. Everyone could see he was a physical freak, but the analysts started getting frustrated waiting for him to make magic happen every single time. Better blockers knew how to deal with him. If Davenport adds NFL-level moves to his repertoire he can lead the NFL in sacks occasionally.

I watched several games with Davenport and it was amazing to watch his transformation over the years. He entered UTSA as a two-star recruit…at 190-pounds. He grew and gained weight/muscle and became the Conference Defensive Player of the Year and top prospect by his 2017 senior year.

Davenport was the same pass rusher/player every game his 2017 season – speed rush and try to push the blocker back or skate around him. Eventually, he can add moves to go with his quicks and be a Pro Bowl caliber player.

Davenport is a normal, football-loving player to watch him in interviews. He seems dedicated to his craft and his team. He’s going to be a useful/good player at a minimum, a possible Pro Bowl player on the upside.

Marcus Davenport, Through the Lens of Our DE Scouting Algorithm:

4.5 of his 8.0 sacks in 2017 were against Rice and North Texas…and that’s used as a negative against him, and I get it…but we also have to understand that’s the level of competition he was playing. North Texas was one of the top teams in the conference. 

In the past two seasons, Davenport played major conference teams – Arizona State, Baylor, and Texas A&M. In those three games, he averaged 5.7 tackles, 0.8 TFLs, 0.7 sacks per game…not bad. A career high 11 tackles versus Texas A&M in 2016. 

The numbers are solid, not ‘wow’, but they may only be a glimpse of the raw potential here. 

2018 Combine measurables…

6’5.6”/264, 33.6” arms, 9.1” hands

4.58 40-time, 1.62 10-yard, 4.41 shuttle, 7.20 three-cone

22 bench reps, 33.5” vertical, 10’4” broad jump

The Historical DE Prospects to Whom Marcus Davenport Most Compares Within Our System:

He gets the Ezekiel Ansah comparison a lot, and it makes sense. I like the Danielle Hunter comp…a guy who did little on the stat sheets in college but was a raw athlete to mold. Hunter has been exponentially better in the pros than in college. If Davenport can get there – he’s as good/better than Hunter. 

*A score of 8.00+ is where we see a stronger correlation of DEs going on to become NFL good/great/elite. A score of 10.00+ is more rarefied air in our system and indicates a greater probability of becoming an elite NFL DE.

All of the DE ratings are based on a 0–10 scale, but a player can score negative, or above a 10.0 in certain instances.

Power-Strength Metrics = A combination of several measurements. An attempt to classify the DE prospect as more of a battle-in-the-trenches type of DE, a 'bull-rusher', and/or a DE prospect who has some DT capabilities.

Speed-Agility Metrics = A combination of several speed, agility, size measurements. A unique measuring system to look for DEs who profile more as speed-rush, stand-up DEs, and/or possible OLBs.

Pass-Rusher Rating = A combination of physical measurables, and college performance, graded historically for future NFL profiling. In the simplest of terms, this is an attempt to classify whether a particular DE is likely to achieve high sack totals in the NFL. We know the 'system'/scheme the DE goes on to play in has a part in future success...but so do the player's skills and performance history. "You can't keep a good man/DE down," we'd like to think.

Tackling Rating = A combination of physical measurables, and college performance, graded historically for future NFL profiling. In the simplest of terms, this is an attempt to classify the DE as one more likely to be involved in a heavy amount of tackles, tackles for a loss, and forced fumbles. Lower-scoring DEs in this subcategory tend to be more pure pass-rushers/specialists. This is also our attempt to quantify, if it's possible, the 'toughness' of a player.

2018 NFL Draft Outlook:

Davenport usually tracks between picks #10-20 overall…usually more #10-15, and occasionally in the top 10 among mock drafters…and always behind Bradley Chubb. I’m not sure the gap between them should be considered so wide. 

If I am an NFL GM, and I need a 4-3 EDGE rusher…I might rather have Davenport at #15 than Chubb at #2, for value purposes. Davenport has the raw skills you have to be willing to invest in because it’s a tough position to find true, high-end pass rushers at in the draft. 

NFL Outlook:   

Probably has a quiet but promising rookie season, and then hopefully takes off from there. At minimum is useful, at maximum is an all-star caliber player. 

4/10/2018