Corey Davis Keeps Trending in Right Direction
If this season is the last for Corey Davis in Nashville, it almost certainly will go down as his best and most consistent act. And his performance against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday will fill the highlight reel.
In a 41-35 loss at Nissan Stadium, the Tennessee Titans fourth-year wide receiver was one of few bright spots in an otherwise disappointing game for the offense. Davis set single-game highs in catches (11) and receiving yards (182). He scored the Titans’ first points with a 17-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
“He’s a big target with a big catch radius, and he’s good on the run – when we can keep him on the run,” coach Mike Vrabel said Monday. “He plays physical. He’s got really good hands. I’ve talked about the confidence, and I think you saw that come out even again (Sunday).
“Hopefully, we’ll keep progressing.”
Nine of Davis’ catches in the loss were for gains of 10 yards or more, including one for 43 yards that set up a MyCole Pruitt touchdown early in the third quarter.
Davis now has four 100-yard games on the season, which is a career high. Prior to this season, he had not had more than two in a single season. His four total touchdowns this season tie a career-high.
Selected fifth overall by the Titans in the 2017 NFL Draft, Davis already has more catches (53) and yards (801) than he did in two of his first three seasons.
Davis, who seems sick of answering questions about his significant improvement, pointed toward simple factors again. Nothing he has accomplished this season has been a result of a drastic change in approach.
“Yeah, that seems to be almost every question this year, is what’s changed between this year and last year. I mean, I’m healthy. I’ve been confident,” he said. “Go out there and play fast and physical and with a free mind.”
As a rookie, Davis, who battled a hamstring injury that season, played in 11 games and made 34 catches for 375 yards. He played in both of the Titans’ postseason games and scored both of the team’s touchdowns in a 35-14 loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Divisional Round.
Last season, Davis finished with 43 receptions for 601 yards and two touchdowns. He scored a touchdown in the Titans’ Divisional Round upset of the Baltimore Ravens.
His best season to date was 2018, his second NFL season, when he led the Titans in receptions (65), receiving yards (891) and touchdowns (4). Davis is on pace to set career highs in all three categories and he currently leads the Titans in receptions and yards this season.
The Titans passed on Davis’ fifth-year option this offseason. While they could still find a way to retain him this coming offseason, it’s likely he is in new threads next season.
If that is what happens, he saved his best with the Titans for last. And the season is far from over, which means things could get even better.
“Corey is huge. He’s been big for us all year long, obviously taken a big stride this year,” quarterback Ryan Tannehill said of Davis last week. “I feel like in the pass game he's got a great feel for what we're trying to do, and the nuances, the details of the routes he’s running, creating a lot of separation and getting himself open.
“... He's the embodiment of how we want to play. Fast, physical, aggressive, and then makes big plays when his number is called.”
