3 October 2023
Less than 24 hours after the Vikings escaped with a 21-13 win over the Carolina Panthers last Sunday, head coach Kevin O’Connell sat down to review the film. He kept noticing pass rusher Marcus Davenport.
Though it’s legitimately hard to miss Davenport based on his physical appearance — his 6-foot-6, 265-pound frame is rather imposing — he stood out because of how many plays he made in the game.
How would O’Connell describe Davenport’s impact?
“Just disruptive,” O’Connell said. “He’s such a force to try to block 1-on-1.”
Indeed. Whether it’s hitting the interior of the offensive line with a sick spin move, or hustling to sack rookie quarterback Bryce Young in open space, Davenport proved how good he can be when he’s operating at 100 percent. As he has been battling an ankle injury over the past month, the Vikings certainly missed his presence on defense in the first three games of the season.
That was apparent to safety Cam Bynum on Sunday whenever he dropped back in coverage.
“I can see him making the quarterback scramble around,” Bynum said. “I am very excited to have a player like him out there with us.”
No wonder defensive coordinator Brian Flores was so excited to get Davenport back in the lineup. Talking about Davenport last week, Flores joked, “When we get him back, nobody will be happier than me.”
It’s not a coincidence that the defense looked much different with Davenport lining up all over the field. Not only is he quick enough to rush off the edge, he’s strong enough to rush up the middle, which makes him a perfect complement to star pass rusher Danielle Hunter.
Now an opposing team essentially has to pick its poison when trying to figure out how to stop both players.
“That’s kind of what we envisioned for Marcus when we went out and got him,” O’Connell said. “It was awesome to see him go out and make it come to life.”
After garnering praise from pretty much everybody, Davenport was much more critical of his performance. He fixated on the fact that his conditioning only allowed him to play 62 percent of the snaps on defense. He added that his technique tends to suffer when he’s tired.
“Personally I just look and see what I should’ve done better,” Davenport said. “I think when I get tired, my technique kind of wanes, and I don’t win how I feel like I should.”
As he continues to work his way back from the ankle injury, Davenport credited his teammates with keeping his spirits up over the past month. They made sure he didn’t get too down on himself amid the hate that tends to pop up on social media.
“I blame myself for seeing some outside noise,” Davenport said. “Some things I had to take personal. Some things I had to let go. I was lucky in that I had people almost every day checking on me and telling me to keep my head up.”
Now he’s back out there with them.
“It was nice to be able to go out there and try to win with my teammates,” Davenport said. “To be able to go out there and feed off each other is a blessing.”
Related Articles
Dane Mizutani: How will Vikings respond to their first win? That is the real test.
Vikings pass rusher D.J. Wonnum was ‘going to get to the end zone one way or another’
Harrison Smith puts in vintage performance to secure Vikings their first victory
Justin Jefferson helps Vikings get some swagger back in 21-13 win over Panthers
Vikings once again without starting center Garrett Bradbury