When it was time for the defensive linemen to go through their training camp conditioning test on Tuesday, Fletcher Cox made sure to keep an eye on Jordan Davis.
The 32-year-old six-time Pro Bowler in his 12th season was curious what kind of shape the 23-year-old Davis reported in.
“I watched him run the conditioning test, he did a great job, I don’t think he was gassed one bit,” Cox said Wednesday. “His conditioning, it’s way better this year than it was last year. He’s coming back, he knows what to expect.
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“Flew around in individual (drills) in practice (Wednesday), and I’m looking forward to seeing him continue to grow. Came back, his weight was great. I’m excited for him.”
Davis is one of the most intriguing stories of Eagles training camp this summer.
He wasn’t bad at all as a rookie, but his fitness was an issue, he missed a month in the middle of the season with an ankle injury, he never got his starting job back and wasn't the same when he returned to action.
Before the injury, he averaged 22 snaps per game.
Philadelphia Eagles
After the injury, he averaged 12.
He got more reps in the postseason, but he just wasn’t the same player.
The jump from Year 1 to Year 2 is a crucial one for NFL players, one that often sets the tone for the rest of their career.
When you’re the 13th overall pick, you really need to shine in Year 2.
“I’ve been in his position,” said Cox, the 12th player taken in the 2012 draft. “I’ve been drafted in the first round. You expect a lot, but the biggest thing is to get in and learn. Learn the defense. Learn how to practice as a pro. Learning the new environment and dealing with a lot of media and letting go of distractions.
“But he’s going to be a really good player for us. You can see it. You can see the growth. The jump from the first season to the second season. And it’s really good to see.
“He’s healthy. Last year I think he really started to ramp up and then he got hurt and as a rookie I think that kind of affected him. He was out for an amount of time, and now he’s healthy and he’s flying around and you can feel his presence.”
Davis rotated with the first defense along with Cox and Milton Williams at practice on Wednesday, Day 1 of training camp.
At some point Jalen Carter – Davis’s college teammate and best friend and the ninth pick in this year’s draft – will be in the mix as well. It wouldn’t surprise anybody if Davis and Carter are the Eagles’ opening-day starters on the interior of the defensive line.
The Eagles have drafted five defensive linemen in the first round since 2007 – all between the 9th and 14th pick – and all five are on the current roster: Brandon Graham, Cox, Derek Barnett, Davis and Carter.
Like Cox, B.G. has been impressed with how far Carter has come since we saw him at the end of last year.
“That boy, he looked good,” Graham said Wednesday. “In OTAs, just the extra work he was doing with me and all the other guys that were doing extra, you could tell that he’s comfortable because his guys (from Georgia) are here with him.
“Got a little year under his belt, now he’s going into Year 2, he’s got some guys he’s familiar with too, and that always helps, and they’re all motivating each other. So Jordan Davis, I’m excited for, because I really do think he’s going to have a great jump from Year 1 to Year 2.”