Carlton Davis Battling The Tribe
June 12th, 2021
Donovan Smith knows all about this phenomenon.
For years, the Bucs’ Super Bowl left tackle (who was dominant in the playoffs) was labeled as slightly better than trash by the rather mysterious graders at ProFootballFocus.com. And because moronic media bought into the PFF Tribe’s grading con game( for too many years), many fans subsequently became convinced that Smith was dreadful.
Some pounded the drum to relocate Smith to guard; others wanted him launched immediately.
Joe found it hilarious how Bucco Bruce Arians arrived in 2019, studied the Bucs’ offensive line and said, ‘We’re good! No need for upheaval here.’ Smith was given a fat contract extension after Arians’ film review and the Bucs offense had a strong 2019 season.
Currently, The Tribe has no issues with Bucs cornerback Carlton Davis. However, The Tribe’s latest extensive cornerback grades rank Davis as the No. 15 best outside corner in football.
Arians disagrees, saying Davis is elite and in the top-5 neighborhood. Aqib Talib agrees.
Joe thinks Davis is a top-10 corner. Regardless, Joe just hopes the various national announcing crews covering the Bucs early this season don’t spend too much time on The Tribe rankings (you know they will) and short-change Davis during broadcasts in a contract year.
It sucks when that happens only because of those damn grades.
On the flip side, those same Tribe rankings have Jamel Dean as the 19th-best outside corner in the NFL, one spot behind Saints three-time Pro Bowler Marshon Lattimore.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:29 pm
I hope Carlton reads this and reacts accordingly for 17 games.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:46 pm
Davis, SMB, and Dean are *NOT* Elite. Not even close.
I can’t believe how many people give them a pass for how badly they played most of the season last year, even giving up 300+ yards to an XFL QB in the playoffs, all because they happened to play better against the Saints/Packers/Chiefs when our pass rush was dominant.
Our corners are the MAJOR WEAK LINK on this team. Davis has been inconsistent. He’s no “shutdown corner” and gets beat often. Hell, he gave up a 50+ yard TD in the NFC Championship when he fell down.
Brent Grimes was a much better cover corner for us even at the end of his career than Davis is now.
Can these guys improve? Of course, but they still have a long way to go to be considered “Elite” cover guys in the NFL.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:51 pm
Oh…
And Aqib Talib absolutely did NOT say Davis was a Top 5 corner. You’re taking his comments out of context. Pffft. Joe is not taking anything out of context. Joe also has heard Talib talk about Davis outside of what was linked here. –Joe
He said he has that ‘heart and skills” to BECOME (I.e. future potential) a Top 5 corner. He didn’t say he was one. Talib was also giving commentary leading up to the Super Bowl, like almost everyone did. It’s not like Talib was praising Davis during the regular season during normal commentary times.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:53 pm
Davis is an ascending talent that is steadily improving. Smith has become “good enough” at LT that he’s not the fairly consistent liability he’s been most of his career. If the FO was sold their young LT was a franchise LT, they ink him long-term instead of doing placeholder 2/3 yr extensions just to get by for the time-being. All that said, the PFF grades are a joke for the most part, but they’re the only one’s out there really doing them so many folks take them as gospel.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:54 pm
As for Donovan Smith…
Many of us didn’t care for him because earlier in his career he was often BEAT and gave up sacks.
Smith is also questionable in run game. He’s become a solid pass protector but we rarely seem to run off the left side. Our biggest runs, especially during the playoffs, came off the RIGHT side towards Wirfs. Like Lenny’s TD runs in the NFC Championship and in the Super Bowl.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:56 pm
Both Davis and Dean are excellent players when they can press their man. That soft crap from Smith damaged them as rooks.
June 12th, 2021 at 1:57 pm
Agree. Top ten.
June 12th, 2021 at 2:05 pm
Uuuhhhmmm…
June 12th, 2021 at 2:41 pm
I should have rephrased that to “all because they were able to hide their weak skills due to our dominant pass rush.”
June 12th, 2021 at 2:51 pm
PFF is best off ignored and 15 is harsh. Top ten sounds good to me and if he can be more consistent, maybe even top 5. The talent is there for sure.
June 12th, 2021 at 3:03 pm
Misleading headline Joe, I thought the Seminole Tribe was after him. Sheesh
June 12th, 2021 at 3:10 pm
PFF ratings mean nothing. Different players on different teams with different teammates, coaches and schemes.
Does PFF consider how the other 10 guys, the coaches and the style of play impact the one they are rating? No.
Summertime blues. Nothing worthy of reporting but gotta keep the traffic. Not a criticism, Joe. You’re doing the best you can with what you’ve got.
June 12th, 2021 at 3:14 pm
Bradybucs is on point…
On the bright side, they came together at the end of the year and should be even better this season.
June 12th, 2021 at 3:36 pm
The longest run in bucs history came off left side, Rojo 98 yards to the house
June 12th, 2021 at 3:47 pm
Sick of losing,
I just watched that video of Rojo’s 98 yard run.
Looks like Durable Donnie got away with a hold/sling down on that play.
June 12th, 2021 at 3:51 pm
The extra point on the next play was blocked BTW.
The Left side of the OL gave that one up.
Couldn’t tell if it was the Durable one though…..
June 12th, 2021 at 4:07 pm
Bucs vs dirty birds currently on NFL NETWORK 4PM Saturday
June 12th, 2021 at 4:32 pm
Im perfectly fine with everyone down on Davis. Likely to keep his price down (wishful thinking). This kid is asked to go head to head with the best every week and it wasnt always pretty. He gives Bowles a lot of flexibility on the back end. He is definitely and ascending player. Easily overlooked when you have the guys that they do in the front seven. I appreciate how he has been playing under control last season. Not as many flags, and he still seems to get his hands on receivers. I think Michael Thomas went to Davis Island a game or two last season.
June 12th, 2021 at 4:44 pm
This is very very simple. Go back to 2019. Davis has a track record of completely taking #1 WRs out of the game. Michael Thomas numerous times. Julio Jones numerous times. Devonte Adams more then once.
I dont care where that ranks him. When Davis plays the top reciever dissappears.
June 12th, 2021 at 5:29 pm
As for Smith, left tackle often goes up against the opponents best pass rushers. Brady was not sacked very often. The whole line did their job and Brady gets rid of the ball fast which really helps. Jamess held the ball way too long way too often and ate too many sacks and made too many desperation throws. The Bucs line is very good and Brady makes them even better. As for Davis, he and the other dbs improved as the year went on. How good are they? Improved but still likely the weakest link in an otherwise dominate defense. Hope they up their play all season like they did in the back half last year.
June 12th, 2021 at 5:34 pm
A corner is as good as his last pass defense. Sometimes they look great, other times they get beat. Tough to rank corners. Yes, I would like to have Willie Brown, Deon Sanders, Mike Haynes, Lester Hayes and some others, but it’s really tough to rank corners in my opinion, especially in this pass happy league.
June 12th, 2021 at 5:53 pm
Smith giving up sacks with Jameis at the helm. No S sherlock. Jameis held the ball too long, had trouble reading defenses as they adjusted, and caused a boatload of sacks. The real measure of his sack tendency is during the time when we had a real QB at the helm…. Tom Brady. Not a turnover machine.
June 12th, 2021 at 6:25 pm
Good one, Pete.
June 12th, 2021 at 6:57 pm
Davis is definitely a top 10 corner, that plays like a top 5 corner against top tier WR’s.
June 12th, 2021 at 7:10 pm
SMB was definitely the weakest link during the regular season but boy did that change in the playoffs. He reached deep down inside and elevated his game as a result. He has the talent and supposedly he is a hard worker and student but he literally came out of nowhere to become our defensive MVP of the playoffs. Hopefully he can pick right up where he left off. It’s hard not to be impressed with these guys as they peaked at the right time!
June 12th, 2021 at 7:16 pm
Bunting is my favorite Buc and to call him a weak link when he just may have been the biggest reason for our SuperBowl run is laughable.
He aint making plays out there he changing games. Total Beast!!
June 12th, 2021 at 7:18 pm
And MB I only read one sentance before kneejerk reaction. But my comment stands to all the fools who still ride Buntings hump. They are lurking out there.
June 12th, 2021 at 10:09 pm
JimmyJack,
You’re the same homer that was saying how Jamel Dean was an amazing corner. I believe your quote was something like “no way would I ever have him on the bench” or something like that, even if we were to acquire a Vet Corner. So it’s hilarious how you’re now all over SMB because he played well in the playoffs.
So many Bucs fans will “come back down to earth” the second our pass rush doesn’t dominate another team’s offensive line and as a result our secondary is exposed again like they were many times last season.
That’s the difference with other great NFL Defenses… if the pass rush isn’t getting through to the other team’s QB, their secondary is strong enough to hold them in check. This doesn’t happen with our team. In so many games when Shaq and JPP didn’t get sacks, our secondary got torched.
Our secondary is average and by no means great like some are saying.
June 12th, 2021 at 11:03 pm
Davis’ only fault is he isn’t QUITE as fast as Tyreek Hill
June 13th, 2021 at 12:08 am
BradyBucs…That’s the difference with other great NFL Defenses… if the pass rush isn’t getting through to the other team’s QB, their secondary is strong enough to hold them in check. This doesn’t happen with our team. In so many games when Shaq and JPP didn’t get sacks, our secondary got torched.
I would go a step further Brady B, without a pass rush every NFL Secondary is dead meat. And forget about college having any real pass defense.
So all the more it is on the Front 7 to dominate game in and game out.
With that said, the Secondary needs to continue to step up like they began to after the WFT playoff game.
If anyone wants to argue about the Secondary being so great, just go back and watch ALL 20 games last year.
The Film does not lie.
GO BUCS!!!!!!
June 13th, 2021 at 11:53 am
The PFF ratings would have been different had Coach Bowles called more press man coverage. Those three starting corners are all far better at playing press man than zone. Once the Bucs got to the playoffs, he started calling a lot more press man plays and the results are obvious.
June 13th, 2021 at 12:41 pm
Your right IDROOLPEWTER&RED… Bowles needs to go with more press coverage, but it was the off coverage that they used to beat the Chiefs. When they played press in the first KC game in the 1st Quarter T Hill got 200 yards on C Davis. When they went to off coverage the game evened out.
With that said, generally off coverage has turned the Bucs secondary into a liability, See Mike Smith and his off coverage defenses that got him fired.
So really it is about the opponent and what scheme fits that opponent. I do not like DB’s lining up and conceding first downs, but again they beat Mahome Boy in the Super Bowl with a fierce pass rush and Off Coverage.
I would not have believed they could play that way and beat Mahomes but the DID!!! lol lol
GO BUCS!!!!!!!