Earlier this week, we raised the fantasy stocks of Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny in Seattle’s backfield. One major reason for their collective rise was the departure of Mike Davis, who signed a 2 year, $6 million deal with the Bears this offseason. Many have speculated that this acquisition could spell the end for Jordan Howard, who is under team control through 2019 but has been surrounded by trade rumors since the end of last season. Matt Nagy has raved about Davis’ ability to create production between the tackles — something he’s proven to be better at than Howard — and seems excited about a thunder-and-lightning-type duo with Davis and Tarik Cohen.
The numbers seem to support Nagy’s inclination to go with Davis over Howard. Last season, Davis averaged 4.8 yards/carry running between the tackles and an even 5 yards/carry between the guards; those numbers were each a full yard less for Howard, albeit on a much larger workload. Davis has also shown more as a receiver out of the backfield, catching 34 passes for 214 yards in 2018 versus just 20 catches for 145 yards for Howard. It still remains to be seen if Howard will ultimately be moved before the season, but provided he is, Davis could prove to be a valuable asset in his absence.
The Wolf is very excited about Davis’ prospects in his new location, ranking him as his RB34 for 2019, a whopping 31 spots ahead of the Experts’ Consensus.
