Sixth-round pick Geremy Davis, a wide receiver from UConn, has generated quite a bit of interest since he was selected by the New York Giants. Let's take a look at Davis today as we continue our player-by-player profiles of the 90-man roster the Giants will bring to training camp.
Before we get into that, though, a reminder that Davis visited with Pat Traina (Bleacher report/Inside Football) and myself on the 'Big Blue Chat' podcast recently. That interview is below.
2014 Season in Review
Playing for a bad UConn team that went 2-10, Davis caught 44 passes for 521 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games. His breakout season was 2013, when he caught 71 passes for 1,085 yards (15.3 yards per catch) and three scores.
Must Reads
2015 Season Outlook
The Giants' wide receiver depth chart is a crowded place, with 12 names on it. Of those, four (Odell Beckham Jr., Victor Cruz, Rueben Randle, Dwayne Harris) are locks to make the roster if healthy. five others -- Corey Washington, Preston, Julian Talley, Juron Criner, Chris Harper -- have NFL experience. Marcus Harris almost certainly would have made the Giants' roster a year ago had he not ended up on IR.
So, why did the Giants spend a sixth-round pick on Davis? What could he possibly bring to the table that the other players may not be able to match?
The Giants are hoping, of course, that the 6-foot-2, 216-pound Davis eventually uses that size and strength to distinguish himself as a receiver. In the meantime, they are hoping he puts his attitude, athleticism and aggressiveness to use helping the Giants improve on special teams.
During a recent appearance on the 'Big Blue Chat' podcast, Davis told Pat Traina (Bleacher Report/Inside Football) and myself that special teams is "just a mentality. You've got to want to play special teams."
David Tyree, another Giant wide receiver who was an outstanding special teams player, has already taken Davis under his wing.
"This guy is a big guy who is strong, competitive and more of a possession type receiver, even though he ran really fast at his pro day. He is more of a possession type. He catches the ball," said Giants Vice President of Player Evaluation Marc Ross. "A big guy like that is going to make it as your fourth receiver and special teams player if you want to say the Tyree role. Preston Parker did it for us last year. You need those utility backup guys to help you win. Be ready. Be prepared. If you get in the game, make a catch and play on all the core special teams. Every team needs has to have those kinds of guys to win and that is what we think this guy can do."
Davis has drawn comparisons to Jason Avant, who played eight season with the Philadelphia Eagles as a possession-type receiver.
"He's a height, weight, speed guy. He ran fast, but he doesn't play to that time speed as much. We think he's more of a possession receiver, first down-friendly-to-the-quarterback kind of player," said GM Jerry Reese. "He plays inside. He plays outside. He's a big kid. He has the right attitude to play on special teams. The guy can use his body to post people up, jump balls, good route runner. We like him like that."
If Davis shows the Giants that they are right and he can, indeed, be a core special teams player while he continues to develop as a receiver, he could find his way onto the roster. If not, stashing him on the practice squad wouldn't be a bad thing, either.
Other Profiles
OT Will Beatty (pre-injury)