Why Davon House Is the Packers' Most Pleasant Surprise After 3 Weeks

The Green Bay Packers are off to a 1-2 start so far early in the 2014 season. There hasn't been a lot of pleasant surprises for a team that has struggled offensively overall and has also had inconsistent play from the defense.

The one unit that has played at a high level is the defensive secondary of the Packers, as the team is ranked sixth in the NFL in passing defense. And the one player who has really taken his play up a notch is cornerback Davon House.

House was drafted in the fourth round in 2011 out of New Mexico State. Injuries hampered his progress in the first couple of years of his career.

In his rookie year, the 6'0", 195-pound House had hamstring and ankle issues and only appeared in two games. In 2012, House had a nice training camp before the exhibition game slate started and was named as a starter in the first preseason game against the San Diego Chargers.

Unfortunately, House separated his shoulder in the game and missed the early part of the regular season. No. 31 eventually played in nine games that year and earned five starts.

Last season, House was able to play in all 16 games and once again started five games. House ended up with 44 combined tackles, had one sack, defended 10 passes and had one interception.

Before training camp started this summer, House decided to work out with All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis and other players, as Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reported in early August. House seemed to make a play every practice early in training camp.

That definitely caught the attention of head coach Mike McCarthy, who told Demovsky:

"

Davon House is clearly having his best year here as a pro -- just what he's done in the offseason, some of the things he's focused on, things he knew he could improve on. You saw that since April. He's a big, long, strong corner. He does a lot of good things. I love that whole secondary, just our depth, competition. And I think Davon is off to an excellent start.

"

That hard work and training with Revis paid off, as House continued to have an outstanding training camp, as Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote about late last month.

When the Packers played the Seattle Seahawks in the season opener, House only saw time on special teams and didn't get to play in the secondary.

But House didn't let that fact get him down, as he has played extensively in the last two games against the New York Jets and Detroit Lions.

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

Because the Packers are being very careful regarding the hamstring issues of nickel cornerback Casey Hayward, House has played a lot of nickel the last two games.

House has played effectively as well going up against the likes of Calvin Johnson, as he has seven tackles, three passes defended and also picked off a pass in the Detroit game.

The upgraded play of House gives the Packers a very deep set of cornerbacks in Tramon Williams, Sam Shields, Hayward and House. Special teams ace Jarrett Bush can also help out at cornerback.

If House continues to play effectively in 2014, the Packers will have some tough decisions to make next year, as he will be an unrestricted free agent, along with 12 other teammates, including fellow cornerback Williams.

If House plays at the same level he's played at so far this season and continues to improve, odds are pretty good that No. 31 will remain a Packer next season and beyond.