Davis Out to Alter Perceptions Against Cowboys

Davis Out to Alter Perceptions Against Cowboys

From “camp arm” to starter?

All Austin Davis has to do this weekend is be better than Jake Locker. Honestly. Is that asking too much? Last Sunday in a 26-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, the Tennessee Titans’ offense managed 68 total net yards in the first half. Only the Dolphins, led by a completely discombobulated Ryan Tannehill, produced fewer in Week 2 (62 total net yards in their first half at Buffalo).

The credit went to the Cowboys’ defense. Truthfully, it should not have. Locker was beyond bad. We’re talking four-of-12-for-26-yards-and-an-interception bad – with almost no pressure from Dallas. (He was sacked just once in the first two quarters.) The Cowboys weren’t the ones making him look horrific. In fact, they didn’t rattle him at all. Locker just failed to throw catchable passes to open receivers time after time. If not for tight end Delanie Walker’s pinball-style, 61-yard TD catch-and-run midway through the third quarter, there was a good chance that Tennessee wouldn’t have scored any touchdowns at all that afternoon.

What does that mean for Austin Davis? Allow for a little perspective.

Locker was the second quarterback chosen in the 2011 NFL draft – the eighth overall selection – and has played in 25 games with 20 starts. He has a 9-11 record with a career passer rating of 79.4. That would be excellent for an undrafted and unheralded signal-caller like Davis, but could be bust-worthy for Locker, who is in the final year of his rookie contract. The Titans’ brass are wisely taking a wait-and-see approach on determining if he’s the future of the franchise or just an expendable failed experiment. (Thank you, new CBA, says general manager Ruston Webster!)

The same could be said for Davis and the Rams, despite the fanfare that followed the 25-year-old’s first career start last Sunday. In piloting St. Louis to a comeback road win over Tampa Bay, the Southern Mississippi product showed genuine moxie and a startling command of Brian Schottenheimer’s offense. Yet head coach Jeff Fisher has made it clear that Shaun Hill is the starter when he returns from injury. So, technically, Davis will be listed second on the game day flip card even though he could in fact start Sunday’s tilt. There is another glass ceiling for Davis to break though.

Think about it this way: Locker was virtually guaranteed a starting job the moment Roger Goodell called his name from the podium on draft day. I’m not entirely sure the commissioner could pick Austin Davis out of a police lineup.

Be better than Jake Locker was vs. the same suspect defense the very next week, though, and things could change dramatically.

http://www.101sports.com/2014/09/18/davis-alter-perceptions-cowboys/