Notebook: Davis frustrated with fumbled punt
GREEN BAY - The professional football career of rookie wide receiver Trevor Davis has been short, and Sunday was only his eighth game with the Green Bay Packers. It was also his biggest disappointment.
Davis, who took over the punt return job from incumbent Micah Hyde, muffed a punt in the first half that was recovered by the Tennessee Titans and led to a touchdown shortly thereafter.
“In my eyes, I just need to catch the ball,” said Davis, who declined an interview after the game. “Bobbles aren’t even acceptable, penalty or not. I have to field the ball and catch it cleanly every single time, have that trust in my teammates and building that trust is part of that.”
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Trust seemed to evaporate quickly with the coaches, who replaced Davis with Hyde for the remainder of the game.
“Once you drop a punt like that, you know it’s kind of expected because you kind of lost that trust at that moment,” Davis said. “The only thing you can do is learn from it, keep working and try and gain that trust again.”
Davis also dropped a pass in the fourth quarter as the Packers attempted a comeback. Cameras caught quarterback Aaron Rodgers yelling in Davis’ direction.
“Opportunities, especially for me, don’t come that often,” Davis said. “You need to make the best out of every opportunity that you possibly can get. That game wasn’t very good for me, but I just need to learn from it.
Missing the mark: The yard-gobbling romps by Titans’ tight end Delanie Walker were made possible in part by missed tackles. Kentrell Brice, Demetri Goodson, Morgan Burnett and others all missed the mark.
“Missed tackles have been a discussion the last couple weeks,” defensive back Micah Hyde said. “You can give up some catches and stuff like that as long as you rally to tackle. We haven’t been doing that lately.”
Brice, in particular, had trouble with Walker, who finished with nine catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. The rookie safety yielded gains of 41 yards and 8 yards.
“It comes with growth,” Brice said. “I embrace it. It doesn’t really put me in the dumps about it. The type of person I am, if I struggle with one thing I want to go against it again, just attack it so I can get better at my craft.
“I feel like it was something I needed for me to be able to elevate my game to the next level.”
Bouncing back: Even Washington took notice of the punishment dished out by the Tennessee Titans last week.
Cornerback Josh Norman believes that type of loss will fuel the Packers on Sunday night.
“I’m sure they’re going to come in hungry,” Norman said. “They took a pretty bad beating last week, they really did. I don’t feel like they’re going to come in here and lay this thing down. They’re going to come out here fiery hot.
“A-Rod already said that it’s on him, so I’m pretty sure that he’s going to come out ready to go. I’ve got to be ready to go, too, because he’s not going to shy away from nothing, I know that. I need to be on top of my P’s and Q’s, for sure.”
Trash talk: Being on top his P’s and Q’s almost always includes jawing with the opposing receivers.
Norman is a noted trash talker, and his warfare with Odell Beckham Jr. of the New York Giants made highlight reels across the country.
Will the Packers talk back?
“I don’t care about that,” wide receiver Davante Adams said. “It is what it is. Guys are going to be who they are. He likes to have fun, talk a little bit out there, but you can’t knock him for it, he plays some good ball, too. It’ll be fun.”