Chargers 90-in-90: EDGE Jamal Davis II

Jamal Davis II hails from the home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He attended Canton McKinley High School where he started for three years on the varsity team. As a senior, Davis earned Northeast Inland District Division 1 Defensive Player of the Year honors after recording 105 tackles, 21 tackles of loss, 3.5 sacks, and three forced fumbles.

Davis initially committed to play his college ball at Pittsburgh under head coach Pat Narduzzi. After redshirting as a freshman, Davis played one season at Pitt in 2015 where he recorded a lone tackle in three games played. He then chose to transfer back home to Ohio and play for Akron, although he was forced to sit out the entire 2016 season due to NCAA transfer rules.

When it was finally time for Davis to his the field for the Zips, he recorded 14 games played with 12 total starts at defensive end. He finished with 69 tackles, a team-high 15.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks. In his final year at the college level, Davis earned Second-Team All-MAC honors by the coaches after posting 82 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, four sacks, and a forced fumble. His efforts also earned him an invite to the that year’s NFL Combine.

Davis went undrafted in 2019 before eventually signing a deal to join the Texans.

Since then, Davis has bounced around to a number of teams over the past three seasons. In 2019, he also saw stint with the Colts and Dolphins. In 2020, he spent time with both the Titans and Browns. During the 2021 season, Davis has his longest stint with a franchise since becoming a pro with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League.

On January 25th of this year, Davis signed a reserve/future deal with the Chargers.

Basic Info

Height: 6’3
Weight: 245
College: Akron
Experience: 2
Years with team: 0

Contract Status

“Jamal Davis signed a 1 year, $827,500 contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, including a $2,500 signing bonus, $2,500 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $827,500. In 2022, Davis will earn a base salary of $825,000 and a signing bonus of $2,500, while carrying a cap hit of $827,500 and a dead cap value of $2,500.” - Spotrac.com

The Good

Davis offers notable athleticism for the edge position as he ran a 4.60 in the 40 with a 39-inch jump in the vertical at the 2019 NFL Combine. His days as an off-ball linebacker have given him a solid floor for agility and lateral movements. Coming out of Akron, draft evaluators noted that he possesses some good pop in his hands and a motor that allowed him to see plenty of cleanup tackles all over the field. He only played two seasons of edge rusher in college which means there’s likely some potential that still needs to be unlocked.

The Bad

Bouncing around five different teams in two years is never a good look for a player. His inexperience at the position has certainly set him back amongst his peers which is why some success in the CFL last year may have been the best thing for him.

His biggest negatives coming out of Akron were that he’s a slow reactor to offensive tackles and that he’s too easy to find, meaning he lacks any notable elusiveness.

Odds of making the roster/What to expect in 2022?

Davis can benefit from a shallow group at edge rusher by showing out and potentially earning a backup spot over Emeke Egbule. So far in training camp, however, this doesn’t seem to be the case. As it stands, I see Davis earning a practice squad spot ahead of rookie UDFA Ty Shelby.