FILM ROOM | Linebacker Devante Downs
It's still relatively early in training camp, but already, inside linebacker Devante Downs, a seventh-round pick by the Vikings whom the Giants signed last year, has emerged as one of those "bottom of the roster" guys who caught the eye of head coach Joe Judge.
Here's what Judge had to say about Downs:
He has good movement skills. I like the way he works. He’s starting to communicate a lot better with his command in the system and really understanding. That comes with time. That’s every player in our system. Everyone gets more comfortable and communicates better. But he’s a guy that comes in, you can see his eyes in meetings, he’s very engaged and focused on you when you’re talking. Whether you’re talking directly to him or somebody else, he’s taking the same coaching point. He comes on the field every day, ‘Yes sir,’ ‘no sir,’ goes to work, does whatever you ask him to do to the best of his ability. I’m enjoying working with him a whole lot.
Downs was selected by Rick Spielman and the Minnesota Vikings and made it through final cuts last year. But Downs ended up being released a few weeks into the season due to the Vikings defense's depth.
The 24-year-old linebacker attended the University of Cal and was very productive in college. Through four seasons, he produced 211 total tackles, 14.5 for a loss, eight sacks, five interceptions, and three forced fumbles.
The former Cal linebacker has been in the league for two seasons but has hardly seen the field past special teams work.
Downs fell in the draft, partly because of a 2017 knee injury that prevented him from competing in the pro day outside of his 23 reps on the bench.
The early adulation this year is a good sign for Downs. However, there’s still a lot of competition for backup linebacker spots after New York added Cam Brown, Carter Coughlin, T.J. Brunson, and Tae Crowder in the draft, while also having 2019 undrafted rookie free agent Josiah Tauaefa.
So as we always try to do, we wanted to dive into some preseason clips of Downs to get a better idea of what he brings to the table and how he might fit in on this team.
(Devante Downs is No. 57 with the Vikings and No. 52 with the Giants. Clips are via NFL Game Pass.)
My initial impression is that being a year-and-a-half removed from a bad knee injury, his athletic ability wasn’t great. He’s a 6’2, 252-pound, linebacker, so that’s to be expected.
Possibly, he shed weight this offseason, which may have led to better movement skills, but the clip below shows a gross underestimation of Taysom Hill’s speed, yet the competitive toughness of Downs to not give up does carry some encouragement.
In the clip below, Downs is starting from the middle of the field and is able to keep pace with the running back out of the backfield. But the pass form the quarterback is on the upfield shoulder of the running back, and it’s outside the numbers.
Downs isn’t quick enough to cut the angle off and use the sideline to his advantage, so he concedes the yardage before forcing the running back out of bounds, after the first down.
Below, and just a tad bit later on the drive, Downs shows good patience to shoot the A-gap and make the tackle just beyond the line of scrimmage. Downs comes in aggressively low and wraps up the ball carrier for a sure tackle.
It’s good to see Downs work well through trash as the MIKE (middle linebacker) in the 4-3 over front of Mike Zimmer’s defense with the Vikings.
He starts outside on the double pulling gap/power pitch and outruns the backside guard’s block. He absorbs a little contact and then gets to the ball carrier for the tackle. It's a nice play, in tight quarters, from the young linebacker.
In this other gap/power designed outside run for the Bills, Downs is able to avoid the offensive lineman’s block by taking a hard inside angle to the ball carrier, who showed some indecision on the play.
Downs puts his foot in the ground and changes direction nicely to make the tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Downs was certainly helped here by his teammates, but his change of direction skills and avoidance of the block were good to see.
Downs was also the beneficiary of a late interception to seal a preseason win against the Seattle Seahawks in 2019.
I’m not going to lie, it wasn’t the hardest interception to make, but he put himself in a position to succeed. The Seattle receiver ran a lackadaisical dig route about 18 yards down the field, and Downs sat in the middle hole. The quarterback released the ball, and Downs just watched it right into his chest to seal the win.
Special Teams Play
Most NFL teams should put a high precedent on players that thrive on special teams. Downs has been a good interior protector and solid locator while being solid on kick coverage as well. He quickly gets down the field and is aggressive to tackle.
This ability to make a small impact on special teams can be a difference-maker for him if it’s more impactful than his counterparts fighting for a roster spot.
Final Thoughts
By no means is Devante Downs a guarantee for a roster spot in a young, crowded, linebacker room, but public praise from your head football coach is a good start to training camp.
It seems that Joe Judge has taken a liking to Downs’ habits; even though he’s a young player himself, the other roster bubble players should note how Downs is catching Judge’s eye.
If Downs makes the roster, he will be one of the last spots and earn a role on specials while backing up David Mayo.
