Tyler Davis, IDL Clemson: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Davis was a four-star recruit from Wekiva High School in Apopka, Fla. in the class of 2019

Clemson defensive tackle Tyler Davis put together an excellent resume during his five seasons with the Tigers. The four-time All-ACC selection and two-time team captain projects as a Day 3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Visit my Twitter account @Sam_Teets33 for more opinions on prospects, clips, and the latest football content.

Tyler Davis, IDL Clemson: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Fifth-year defensive tackle from Apopka, Fla.

Background: Davis was a four-star recruit from Wekiva High School in Apopka, Fla. in the class of 2019. He was the No. 137 recruit according to 247Sports, No. 151 for Rivals, and No. 175 for On3.com. ESPN ranked him 58th in the nation with an 85 grade out of 100. As a high school senior, he totaled 34 tackles, including 14 tackles for loss and six sacks, and an interception. Wekiva achieved an 11-2 record and a top ten ranking in the state of Florida. Davis was co-MVP of the junior Legends Showcase in 2017. He earned a degree in management in 2022. Davis was born on Nov. 1, 2000.

Injuries & Off-Field: 2020 MCL sprain suffered against Wake cost him two games, 2020 rolled ankle vs. Georgia Tech cost him three games, 2021 bicep injury that required surgery and cost him three games, 2022 undisclosed injury vs. Georgia Tech led to two missed games

Awards: 2019 Second Team All-ACC, 2021 First Team All-ACC, 2022 First Team All-ACC, 2022 Second Team All-American (FWAA), 2022 Team Captain, 2023 First Team All-ACC, 2023 Team Captain

Pros: Special teams experience on the punt return, punt coverage, field goal block, and field goal units, never penalized on defense in college, quick off the line, decent hip flexibility, natural leverage advantage, relentless leg drive, maintains low pad level when bull rushing, two-armed bull rush, hand placement, rip move, swim move, club move, club-rip, pulls and replaces hands quickly, splits blockers, power mismatch against centers, creates plenty of space for teammates on stunts, motor runs hot in pursuit, good pursuit speed, quick to diagnose screens, quick to disengage blocks and redirect to the ball, flows laterally down the line to the ball, surprisingly consistent wrap-up tackler, gets hands up and into passing lanes

Cons: Age, injury history, undersized, arm length, explosiveness is average at best, athleticism is average, not sudden or twitchy, some reps where he comes out of his stance too high and slow, too many non-impact pass rush reps, reps where he gets caught pinballing around, stunts helped cover arm length concerns, arm length causes bull rush to stall as o-lineman re-establishes hands, fails to generate pressure when the offensive lineman lands the first punch, lacks an instant-win pass rush move, needs more pass rush moves, doesn’t use enough hand counters when rush stalls, hands aren’t urgent enough, play strength failed as a pass rusher vs. Florida State (2023), tough outing against D'Mitri Emmanuel (2023), struggles to break the clamps of long-armed linemen, pushes vertically on run plays which opens gaps, overtake and out-leveraged on reach blocks, driven laterally out of plays, not a good match for double teams, easily driven out of gap by double teams, inconsistent anchoring in his gap, tackle radius

Overview: Davis has a little over 500 career special teams snaps split across the punt return, punt coverage, field goal block, and field goal units. He has played all across the line during his lengthy college career, which spanned more than 2,000 defensive snaps. Davis frequently played 3-tech, 2i, 2-tech, 1-tech, and 0-tech but also took limited snaps at 5-tech and 4-tech. He appeared on Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List for The Athletic in 2023. According to Feldman, Davis bench presses 405 lbs. and can do 30 reps of 225 lbs. He squats 680 lbs., front squats 465 lbs., power cleans 350 lbs., and deadlifts 655 lbs. Clemson also timed Davis running a 4.95 40-yard dash. On the field, the fifth-year defender is quick off the line and shows decent hip flexibility for a player with his build. He has natural leverage coming off the line. His best reps as a pass rusher involve staying low, shooting both hands into the offensive lineman’s chest, and firing his legs for a powerful two-armed bull rush. Davis has developed his hand placement as a way to counterbalance his extremely limited arm length. His other pass rush moves include rips, swims, clubs, and club-rips. While Davis pulls and replaces his hands quickly, there isn’t much urgency in his hand usage. He needs to continue developing his pass rush arsenal and must begin using hand counters to keep his rush going mid-play. He allows his pass rush to fade without deploying counter steps too often. Davis lacks an instant-win pass rush move and ends up being stalemated on too many pass rush reps. His arm length is a serious outlier, which leads to him struggling to establish positioning or rush the passer when the offensive lineman lands the first punch. This length issue causes Davis’ bull rush to stall when the offensive lineman overcomes the initial shock and re-establishes his hands. Despite his weight room heroics, Davis isn’t a true powerhouse. His play strength fails in some games, and he ends up pinballing around or getting stuck on blocks while trying to break strong clamps. He benefited from Clemson’s stunts manufacturing pressures and hiding his arm length. Davis gave the Tigers a power mismatch against centers, but he lacks the mass to play a traditional 0-tech role in the NFL. The Florida native’s motor runs hot in pursuit, and he shows good open field speed. He is quick to diagnose screens and disengage from blocks to redirect to the ball. Davis is better moving laterally in the run game than anchoring in a gap, which makes him a good counter for off-tackle runs. He is a surprisingly consistent wrap-up tackler despite his arm length. Unfortunately, he pushes vertically too often on run plays, which opens large gaps. His average athleticism and explosiveness lead to him being overtaken and out-leveraged on reach blocks. His inconsistent power leads to him being driven laterally out of plays. Davis is a poor matchup for double teams, which easily drive him out of his gap. The former four-star recruit is an older athlete with an injury history and short arms. That’s a bad combination. He also lacks the suddenness and twitch to compensate for his physical limitations.

Overall, Davis can be a disruptive bull rusher thanks to his low pad level and leg drive, but his injury history and lack of ideal athletic traits firmly take him out of the top 100 discussion. The veteran lineman could become a nice rotational contributor, but players with his profile rarely become full-time starters.

Role & Scheme Fit: Rotational 3-tech on passing downs

Round Projection: Mid Fifth to Early Sixth

Size: 6'2", 300 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 01-16-24