The FWAA awards a defensive player weekly for their outstanding game performance. This week, Georgia nose tackle Jordan Davis was given the award.

This season, Georgia nose tackle Jordan Davis was awarded the first Nagurski Player of the Week after a stellar performance against the Clemson Tigers on primetime national television. Davis is currently projected to be a first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, barring any injury or other unfortunate event.

“Two on me means somebody’s free,” Davis told ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the game in an on-field interview. “I know that’s going to free up a linebacker or another defensive lineman. Amazingly, they have that type of respect for me. We came out here and played the game we were supposed to play.”

The press release from the FWAA announcing the award was glowing with praise from Davis’ performance. “Jordan Davis bolstered a defensive wall against a usually-prolific Clemson offense,” the release read, “drawing consistent double- and sometimes triple- teams. That attention allowed other Bulldogs to become playmakers as Georgia registered seven sacks and a defensive touchdown while holding Clemson to two yards rushing and keeping the Tigers out of the end zone in a 10-3 win in a battle of top-five teams.”

Jordan Davis is more than brute strength

There is a reason why Jordan Davis is so highly regarded in NFL scouting circles. His body composition is enough to make people talk. He’s 6’6″ and 360 pounds – a huge interior presence when talking about a run defender.

Davis isn’t just a brute. He has technique to his game. Watch in the video above how he uses two aspects to drive the guard back into the quarterback in a one-on-one situation. He has great lower body strength to drive. A stout lower body allows you to gather strength as you push into the blocker. But if you notice, he’s not simply bodying the guard with manpower. He’s winning up top, too, with his hands, using his length to keep distance from the guard. That length and hand placement prevent the guard from engaging with him and slow down his power rush.

That’s next-level stuff.

His athletic ability is almost surreal

Jordan Davis’ athletic ability is off of the chains, dawg! (Georgia reference, I’ve been waiting a while to use that one)

This second video demonstrates exactly how athletic he can be. He has a strong first step and uses his hand swipe to work around the center to the A-gap. The right guard is supposed to help right here and close this gap immediately. Unfortunately, he underestimates the quickness of Jordan Davis and completely misses the block. Then, as Davis works up into the pocket, the center is trying to recover. The center, at this point, wants to push Davis out of the pocket.

Look at how Davis is already under the center’s block on that second shot in the video. That’s a 6’6″ dude getting under a 6’3″ blocker! He works under the block and gains inside leverage. Then, he plants his foot and rotates 180 degrees to work back to the quarterback to get the sack.

That’s another level of dominance there.

Conclusion

Jordan Davis is primed to be the first defensive tackle selected in the 2022 NFL Draft. His skill set is immense and is the perfect fit for what NFL defenses want – either in a 3-4 front or a 4-3.

I’ve written about it on here before. The NFL is turning to bigger, athletic bodies upfront as much as they can. The idea of a nose tackle is to consistently eat double team assignments and open one-on-one opportunities for the edge rushers. If you have two nose tackle types playing inside, you might force the offense to block one of your edge rushers alone with a tight end.

Davis is a solid run defender because of his ability to close gaps and has the skillset to condense the pocket effectively. He’s an immensely talented player who appears ready to contribute immediately on an NFL team. He’s going to get drafted very high, my friends. Get ready, NFL. This monster is headed your way.