NFL Draft: Cal's Ashtyn Davis Plans to Give First-Round Value to Team That Takes Him

Former Bears safety answers questions about his preparation for the draft

Photo by Trevor Ruszkowski, USA Today

Ashtyn Davis' life will change when he is selected in the NFL draft, which begins Thursday.

The former Cal safety has done all the prepration he can, and now he must just wait to see which team takes him. Davis probably will have to wait until Friday to hear his name called, but he noted below that he plans to give "first-round value" to the team that drafts him regardless of the round he is taken. 

We asked Davis a half-dozen questions about his preparation for the draft in these unusual times.

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1. What are you doing to stay in shape?

Answer: Working out in my apartment, running on a treadmill, facetime workouts with old teammates and friends back home, and sneaking onto fields by myself when I can.

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2. What else are you doing to prepare for the NFL Draft?

Answer: I don’t really know what that question entails. I’m kind of just waiting for it to happen. It’s not something I can really prepare for other than speak with teams that want to speak with me.

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3. What would you like NFL scouts to know about you that they may not already know?

Answer: Regardless of where I go in the draft, I plan on giving the team that gives me an opportunity to play, first-round value out of me.

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4. In what other ways (other than football) has the novel coronavirus affected you and what you are doing?

Answer: It’s mainly just had an impact on lifting and running. It’s more difficult to stay in shape with the current perimeters here in southern California, but I am doing my best!

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5. Have you had much communication with NFL teams?

Answer: Yes, I have had a lot of communication with teams via Facetime, Zoom, and other video conference apps.

6. Are you looking forward to the draft, and do you have any expectations?

Answer: Looking forward to the draft to find out where my new home will be. I have no expectations; I’m just excited to get my foot in the door.

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Davis probably won't be taken in the first round, which will take place on Thursday, but there is a pretty good chance he will hear his name called on Friday, when the second- and third-round selections are made.

The assorted mock drafts have Davis being taken anywhere from the second to the fourth round, so it's possible Davis' name will still be available when selections for the fourth through seventh rounds will be made on Saturday, the final day of the draft. Saturday is the day former Cal linebacker Evan Weaver is expected to be drafted.

Most of the mock drafts posted recently project Davis to be taken in the second round. That is the opinion of this 247Sports.com mock draft posted over the weekend, which predicts Davis to be taken with the 27th pick of the second round, which is the 59th overall selection.

Two previous CBSSports.com's mock drafts also had Davis in the second round, as reflected in stories here and here.

But the most recent CBS Sports mock draft drops Davis out of the second round.

Sports Illustrated ranked Davis as the 49th-best prospect in the draft:

Davis was never timed in the 40-yard dash, which was expected to lift the draft status for the speedy Davis. He did not run the 40 at the NFL Combine, opting to allow more recovery time from offseason surgery. He planned to run the 40 at Cal Pro Day, scheduled for March 20, but the event was canceled because of the sports shutdown resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

It will be a strange draft, because it will all be done via phones, computers and the internet instead of live at a site.