During his introductory press conference with Detroit media after he was acquired from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in March, Carlton Davis was asked something along the line of "What are the Lions getting with you?"
His answer was not short on confidence.
"You about to get a lockdown corner,” Davis said. “You about to have one side (of the field) just, like, unavailable. That’s what I do. I’m here to take the No. 1 receiver on these teams. I’m here to deny the ball, I’m here to take the ball away.”
"I’ve done it, taken guys out of the game before. Check the film,” Davis said. “Turn on the Tampa Bay film. Turn on me against top receivers and see their stats when I’m on them. Not when they’re in zone. Not when they’re in the slot running away from me. Not when I’m in zone. When I’m man-on-man, press. Turn on that film, and then let me know what you think.”
Davis' prowess and comfort as a man-coverage corner seemed sure to fit perfectly with what defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn likes to do. It was just a matter of seeing it on the field.
Entering Week 15, the Lions have the lowest passer rating against in the NFL (76.5), and they are allowing the second-lowest completion rate (60.7 percent). Davis is a leading cog in that, allowing a 56.5 percent completion rate and an 81.0 passer rating in his coverage (according to Pro Football Reference).
Pro Football Focus' grading is also very high on Davis' work. He is the site's No. 16 overall graded cornerback entering Week 15 (73.6), with top-35 grades in coverage (71.8) and as a run defender (74.7). Take away some of his eight accepted penalties, including five pass interferences, and that coverage grade would be noticeably better.
Davis' most recent penalty came back in Week 7 against the Minnesota Vikings. Somewhere in line with that, Richard Silva of the Detroit News recently had these notes.
Since Week 9, Davis is PFF's the No. 1 cornerback with an overall grade of 83.1 (minimum of 100 snaps). His 86.4 coverage grade is also No. 1 over that span, and his 56.3 passer rating allowed is No. 12 over the span.
With his skillset and swagger to match, Davis has been the No.1, lock down corner the Lions hoped they were getting when they traded for him and he pulled no punches to say he would be.
"It's not bragging if you can back it up", and Davis has backed up his words upon arriving in Detroit.