How a lost Steeler became 'best-tackling free safety' in NFL

[polamalubeast]

PITTSBURGH -- Sean Davis might not want the Pittsburgh Steelers to know that the free safety experiment is going so well.

"I don't know if I should tell myself that because they might move me next year," said Davis, who has experimented at cornerback and strong safety since the Steelers selected him in the second round of the 2016 draft out of Maryland. "But [it] feels great to finally just know where I'm going to be at each play."

The Steelers have hit on a defensive back in the draft, which hasn't exactly been a position of strength. Their top three cornerbacks include two free-agent veterans previously released by other teams (Joe Haden, Coty Sensabaugh) and an undrafted slot corner (Mike Hilton) despite the selection of five corners in the past four drafts.

But at safety, Davis is ascending in his third season despite his versatility hindering him at times in the past. He played some corner and safety at Maryland, so the Steelers tried both spots in his rookie year, to mixed results.

In Year 2, Davis led the team in tackles but hadn't maximized his potential.

Teammates are seeing it now.

"I think he's the best-tackling free safety in the league," Sensabaugh said. "He holds us down. He's physical."

Davis, who pairs with first-round rookie Terrell Edmunds and Morgan Burnett at safety, said the free safety spot suits him because of his speed in the open field. A player once known for the occasional bad penalty has shown discipline as the last line of defense.

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http://www.espn.com/blog/pittsburgh-...-safety-in-nfl

[pczach]

From the day they drafted Davis I was telling everyone that would listen that I believed he was best suited to play FS. For the life of me, I will never understand why they had Mike Mitchell at FS and Davis at SS. Each player's talents were best suited to the other position. I believe that they thought Mitchell was much better at communication, but it still doesn't fully explain why they didn't see this earlier. Many of us just assumed he didn't have the mental capacity for the job description. That is being proven wrong as we speak.

I'm just happy that Davis got a chance to play where I believe he was meant to play, and that he is performing well there.

When you add in that Edmunds is a rookie playing significant time and has not been a liability on the field since the first couple games of the year.

They are now young, tough, fast, and smart at the safety position. What a difference a year makes.

[polamalubeast]

From the day they drafted Davis I was telling everyone that would listen that I believed he was best suited to play FS. For the life of me, I will never understand why they had Mike Mitchell at FS and Davis at SS. Each player's talents were best suited to the other position. I believe that they thought Mitchell was much better at communication, but it still doesn't fully explain why they didn't see this earlier. Many of us just assumed he didn't have the mental capacity for the job description. That is being proven wrong as we speak.

I agree with that

For the communication, I hope that was not the reason why the steelers put Mitchell at the FS position since the communication was the laughing stock of the NFL last year .... it's much better this year and I hope that it will continue with the games against Rivers, Brady and Brees in december.

It is important in his games that the steelers do not beat themselves.....

[teegre]

As @pczach stated...

I was dumbfounded that they didn’t play Davis at FS (where he seemed like a better fit), and switch Mitchell to SS (where his aggressive play might have actually worked).

The 2016 Draft class is starting to pan out. Hargrave is looking good. Davis is looking very good. Now for Burns to turn things around.


(My bad if this thread turns into a Burns-hate bitch-fest, when we should be praising Davis.)

[Fire Goodell]

Best tackler i seen since Joe Montana