SmashMouth

First-round pick Marcus Davenport has been enjoying his first organized team activities with the New Orleans Saints, especially when he has a chance to go fast.

Fortunately, coaches have encouraged him to move fast even while he's still learning the intricacies of his position.

"It got to a certain point where they're just like, 'We want you to play fast. It doesn't necessarily matter if you mess up; just go fast,'" Davenport said.



The Saints still have plenty of time to teach Davenport the minutiae of playing defensive end in the NFL, but coach Sean Payton and defensive line coach Ryan Nielsen said they've been encouraged with Davenport's progress.

"He's a quick learner, and he's picking it up," Nielsen said.

Davenport played in a two-point stance in college, so his top priority right now is learning to rush from a three-point stance with the Saints. At 6-foot-6 and 265 pounds, Davenport has the size and athleticism to make plays, but the Saints want his technique to be sound as quickly as possible.

During the OTAs session open to media last Thursday, Davenport spent most of practice working with the first-team defense because Cameron Jordan (foot) and Alex Okafor (Achilles) did not participate. Nielsen said it's important for Davenport to get as many reps as possible right now, regardless of where he is on the depth chart, but there's an obvious benefit for him to go against a top-tier left tackle like Terron Armstead.

"These guys are good, and I got a lot of work to improve on to earn my rep," Davenport said.

Nielsen, now in his second year with the Saints, didn't work out Davenport during the draft process. Brian Young, the team's pass rush specialist handled that task.

Still, Nielsen recalls being impressed with Davenport during the combine, and the coach watched several of Davenport's games at UTSA, noticing his length, explosiveness and size.

"He jumps off the tape," Nielsen said.

Nielsen also spoke to UTSA coach Frank Wilson after the draft about Davenport. The two coaches worked together at Ole Miss from 2005-07, and thus far, Nielsen said Davenport has looked exactly like the player Wilson described.

In Davenport's brief introduction with the Saints, Nielsen said the rookie has already made big strides as a player, but there's still plenty of teaching to do.

"He belongs physically; there's no doubt," Nielsen said. "He can really go. It's exciting and it's just another piece to what we do."

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