Jarrad Davis gives Lions an athletic LB ready to play right away

Florida linebacker Jarrad Davis had an injury-plagued senior season, but his talent was undeniable. The Detroit Lions hope he can be a productive player right away after selecting the former Gator with the No. 21 overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft.

After playing mostly a backup role his first two years in Gainesville, Davis earned a starting job in 2015, finishing with 98 tackles (including 11 for losses), 3.5 sacks, and an interception.

His senior season was less successful, though, as Davis tried playing through a high ankle sprain but ultimately ended up missing three games late in the season. The injury also forced him to skip the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine, but he put in an impressive performance at Florida’s pro day, recording vertical (38.5 inches) and broad jump times (10’9) that would’ve ranked tops in Indianapolis.

Davis is a true sideline-to-sideline linebacker. Watch any Florida Gators game from the past two years, and you’ll see him involved in nearly every play. He has an excellent first step, shooting the gap with authority. He should be an immediate asset in run support in the NFL. While pass coverage isn’t his strong suit, his speed and lateral quickness means Davis can still hang with tight ends.

Davis’ instincts and intelligence are off the charts. He has a knack for diagnosing the play before it happens and being where he needs to, and he has the closing speed to be a sure tackler. He identifies weak points and gets to the ball carrier in a hurry — as evidenced by his 7.5 tackles for loss in 2015 on plays that weren’t sacks.

That doesn’t mean he can’t provide pressure by shrinking pockets up the middle. Davis can give quarterbacks nightmares on disguised zone blitzes and showed a strong sense of timing with the Gators, waiting for the perfect moment to charge upfield and exploit a blocking crease. He is also a hard worker who should be a strong locker room presence.

In Davis, the Lions are getting one of the NCAA’s most explosive linebackers. The Florida product was limited to the center of the field thanks to his stocky build (6’1, 238 pounds), but he used his exceptional speed to develop into one of the team’s top playmakers. Though he’s been a bit of a forgotten man after injuries kept him from the combine, his impressive pro day showing in Gainesville helped put him back on the map.

Davis ran a 4.62 40-yard dash (fourth among combine linebackers) and turned in position bests in the broad (129 inches) and vertical (38.5 inches) jumps. For comparison’s sake, his speed and agility measurements were closer to this draft’s wide receivers than the rest of its linebacking corps.

Davis is a bit undersized, which will anchor him to the middle of the field rather than in a more desirable outside linebacker role. He’s at his best when he has room to move, but he has trouble shedding blockers and tends to be erased from plays when engaged with bigger linemen. That was an NCAA problem that will only get worse in the NFL.

He can be overaggressive when pursuing ball carriers, aiming for a highlight-reel tackle when simply wrapping up would suffice. He’s also susceptible to cutback runs, often leaving an open gap for runners to exploit while he gets swallowed up at the line of scrimmage. Davis brings tremendous energy to the field, but sometimes overexerts himself rather than staying disciplined.

And there are also the inevitable questions about his ability to stay healthy. In addition to the high ankle sprain, Davis missed three games in 2014 with a torn meniscus. Teammates and coaches will rave about his toughness, but there are some questions about whether Davis can be an every-down player in the NFL.

Even with those concerns, Davis projects to be a strong run-stopper and team leader, with a potentially high ceiling if he avoids those nagging injuries.

The Lions struggled with defensive depth for a while now, so Davis should immediately bolster the linebacker corps and provide some much-needed support in run defense.