Indianapolis Colts CB Vontae Davis Is Having Pro Bowl-Worthy Season

There were a lot of questions about the Indianapolis Colts defense this offseason. 

Who would step up and be the Colts' stalwart without Robert Mathis? How would the secondary handle losing Antoine Bethea without adding any appreciable depth at cornerback? How could the Colts get to opposing quarterbacks with more consistency? 

The answer to each of the previous questions, to some extent, depended on the answer to the following.

Would Vontae Davis live up to his four-year, $36 million contract that he signed over the offseason? Would he become the legitimate No. 1 corner that his flashes of brilliance had hinted at and his athleticism had always rendered a future possibility? Would his inconsistencies and tendency to get beat over the top come back to bite the Colts and their man-heavy coverage schemes? 

The year is not yet over, but based on what we've seen so far, Davis has answered each of those questions with confidence. 

Yes, Davis is well worth a big contract, both because of his level of play and what it allows the Colts to do with the rest of the defense. Yes, he's a legitimate No. 1 corner, with the ceiling to be an All-Pro cornerback. No, the inconsistencies haven't emerged, and Davis has yet to give up a big play through the air. 

And, in turn, that answered the defense's big questions: Davis would step up and be the Colts' rock, giving the Colts secondary more firepower than originally anticipated while allowing the pass rush more time and flexibility on a play-by-play basis. 

In short, Davis is the answer to all the Colts' questions. 

But what is it about Davis that has people so excited about him this season? We know he's not perfect, so where does he struggle? How do two smart, independent analysts like Cian Fahey of Football Outsiders and Doug Farrar of Sports Illustrated come up with such vastly different opinions of Davis? 

To answer those questions, we go to the tape. 

Strengths: Outside Release, Speed and Focus

For this review, I watched each of Davis' snaps in coverage against the New York Giants in the first, second and third quarter. Since the Colts had a 40-10 lead by the time the fourth quarter rolled around, I didn't think it gave much particular value. I would add other snippets of film in as well, but the Giants game was charted. 

The strengths for Davis were made clear by the Giants, who continually attacked him where he is at his strongest. 

Davis lines up in press-man coverage on the vast majority of his plays, and against the Giants, he lined up in press on 26 of 29 applicable passing plays (I did not count screens, for example). While this could tempt teams into attempting to beat Davis over the top, it plays right into the Colts' hands if teams try to do so. 

While Davis' footwork isn't the most consistent, he has a size, speed and balance combination that few cornerbacks can match. He is at his best when he can turn his hips and run vertically next to a receiver, using his strength and balance at the line of scrimmage to turn the receiver to the outside and then match them step-for-step down the sideline. 

Against Rueben Randle on Monday night, this technique was in full effect. 

NFL Game Rewind

Davis is in press-man, with little safety help over the top. You can see how little help the Colts give Davis on a play-by-play basis, with Sergio Brown bailing back toward Greg Toler's side of the field while Mike Adams takes a man assignment. 

It's a classic Cover 1 coverage, a staple in the Colts playbook. 

Zero in on Davis on the play, it's a routine vertical route that stems toward the sideline, something that Davis generally encourages receivers to do by turning his hips toward the outside at the release. 

NFL Game Rewind

It's nothing special for Davis, but it's the kind of play the Colts defense wants the opposing offense to run every play, allowing Davis to shut down the sideline completely without help over the top. 

Davis has the speed to keep up with just about any receiver in the league, and he can also recover well if a receiver does happen to beat him on the initial break if a throw is not there immediately. Take this 10-yard dig route, for example. 

NFL Game Rewind

Randle beats Davis on the release, as a slight fake outside gets Davis to take a slight step back with his right foot. When Randle accelerates hard inside, Davis is caught a touch flat-footed. 

NFL Game Rewind

But by the time Randle gets to his inside-breaking route, Davis has already caught back up to him and is in his hip pocket yet again. With his quick acceleration and the speed to match anybody, Davis has the physical talent to hang with any receiver. 

Davis also does much better when he can focus in on one receiver, rather than being forced to react to multiple route concepts in zone coverage or pattern-matching off coverage. He's improved in that area since coming to Indianapolis, and Farrar does an excellent job of pointing out a few examples, but his strength lies in his ability to focus on one guy. 

Weaknesses: Inside Release, Quick Breaks and Ball Skills

While Davis is excellent on sideline routes, he is vulnerable when receivers get inside position on him and can quickly break toward the middle of the field. 

	Total Snaps	Successful Coverage	Catches Allowed	Yards Allowed
Outside Release	19	19	1	12
Inside Release	7	3	1	15

Davis is more of an athlete than he is a technician, so occasionally his footwork can get sloppy, as Fahey points out in his piece. 

It's worth noting that these kind of weaknesses have not occurred as frequently as the season has progressed, but occasionally Davis does allow for quick separation. On this play, for example, Randle again gets Davis to bite outside before going inside and then taking a hard cut on the dig. 

NFL Game Rewind

Davis wasn't able to recover on this one, and Randle has plenty of space to make a grab if Eli Manning had seen him. 

There is one other weakness that Davis has possessed in the past that occasionally rears its head, although it's less of a problem now than it's been in the past: Ball skills. Davis' reaction time to throws in his direction isn't always great, and he often offers more than that. 

Against Andre Johnson earlier this year, for example, Davis allowed a couple back-shoulder fades down the sideline, failing to get his head around in time to keep the ball from No. 80. It's all part of last year's show, which allowed too many touchdowns over the top of the left side in general. 

Pro Bowl-Worthy

In the end, it's hard to argue against a Pro Bowl berth for Davis. The Colts are 6-3 and the defense has played well with a healthy Davis. The numbers are there so far for Davis, and his "eye test" levels have been there as well. 

Is Davis perfect? No. 

His flaws are there and will be highlighted more as the season goes on and teams learn how to attack him more efficiently. I would expect more crossing routes and inside-breaking routes in particular. 

But make no mistake: Davis is playing better than he ever has before, with more consistent coverage and fewer big mistakes. Every corner allows a receiver to run free occasionally, but the fewer times it occurs, the less likely it will be for quarterbacks to take advantage of the opportunity. 

The important part is that Davis' play will continue to allow the Colts to line safeties up on the other side of the field and blitz heavily while expecting Davis to hold up on his own. 

As long as they can still do that, Davis will remain in the Pro Bowl conversation.