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Film Room: Julie'n Davenport Pulling Away in Backup OT Battle

The dust is finally starting to clear on this difficult camp battle, as it appears that Davenport has the inside track to start early in the season. Video via Indianapolis Colts YouTube)

Zach Hicks

The Training Camp competition for left tackle has been a brutal one for Indianapolis Colts' fans. Will Holden, Julie'n Davenport, and Sam Tevi have been battling it out to see which player will start early in the year with Eric Fisher expected to miss time.

The player that I was the lowest on coming into camp was by far and away Davenport. I am a big proponent of having athletes on the offensive line, and his slow feet scared me way too much. I will say, though, that he has been the best of the three in the Colts' two preseason games. 

While I am not fully admitting I was wrong about Davenport quite yet, I am fully prepared to eat crow if he fills in well for Fisher to start the year. He hasn't been spectacular, but his ability in pass protection has been exponentially better than his competition this preseason.

In today's film room, I dive into why Davenport is the best option at left tackle to start the season.

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I do want to preface this section of the article by saying that all of these clips will be in regards to how Davenport fares in pass protection. In run blocking, he is less than stellar (to say the least). At the end of the day though, it is far more important to have the best pass protector out there to start the year.

Davenport's best trait in pass protection is his size/length. At 6'7" 325 pounds (with 36.5" arms), he is a massive human being that can keep defenders away from his frame with ease.

My fears with his lack of athleticism didn't take into account that his size has the ability to hide this deficiency, to a degree. This play is a perfect example as Davenport is slow out of his stance but he is able to get his hands on his defender quickly to win the rep.

Davenport is also the easiest one of the trio to hide in pass protection. Holden and Tevi both have issues with their length and anchor, which allows defensive ends to win with a variety of moves.

When it comes to Davenport, he really just needs help against speed rushers. He is good against power and has a strong anchor against the bull rush. He also prohibits inside moves with his length and due to the fact that there is little space to operate inside of his spacing with the guard.

What the Colts can do to help him is chip with a tight end or running back on every play. It isn't ideal, but even a little chip like this one can help Davenport get into position and lock down his rusher on pass plays.

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Speaking of his ability to anchor and brace against power, this is a good example of that trait. Like I mentioned above, Davenport is a massive human being. It's simply hard to displace him and win with power.

Here, Davenport keeps his chest clean with his long reach and is able to anchor down and resist the bull rush on the outside.

When defensive ends use speed against Davenport, it is vital that he makes contact with his hands. He doesn't have great pop in his hands, but he does have good grip strength once he locks hold of his defender.

If he can make that first contact and hold tight against speed rushers, he can be a positive impact player in pass blocking. This is a good example of what happens when he strikes first, as he knocks the speed rusher off balance and wins the rep.

Easily the best play by a Colts' left tackle this preseason came from Davenport this past weekend. I absolutely love when offensive linemen use a defender's leverage against them when in pass protection.

On this play, Davenport is facing a bull rush off the edge. The defender knows that he has to really lean into Davenport to get any kind of disruption in the backfield. Davenport notices this and calmly swipes away the hands of the bull rusher, causing the defender to fall to the ground. Excellent diagnoses by Davenport with the preferred result.

Final Thoughts

The best in-house solution for the Colts at left tackle with Fisher out is Julie'n Davenport. While it is something that I never expected to write going into this year, I am at least happy that one of these three have begun to separate due to solid play.

Davenport is a limited player that will still be a bit of a liability early in the season. He is, however, the best pass protector of the three, and he is the easiest one to help on the edge.

There will be a drop-off in run blocking at left tackle with him starting, but the most important thing is keeping Carson Wentz (or whichever quarterback starts) clean with time in the pocket. The best chance of doing that is by starting Davenport.

While I was low on him coming into camp, he has certainly exceeded my expectations up to this point. I fully expect Davenport to be the starter come week one and think (hope?) he is at least an adequate stand-in for the time being.

Follow Zach on Twitter @ZachHicks2.

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Zach Hicks
ZACH HICKS

Zach Hicks is the Lead Analyst for HorseshoeHuddle.com. Zach has been on the NFL beat since 2017. His works have appeared on SBNation.com, the Locked On Podcast Network, BleacherReport.com, MSN.com, & Yardbarker.com. 

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