The Buffalo Bills selected Gabriel Davis, Wide Receiver, out of the University of Central Florida (UCF). He was the 22nd pick of the fourth round and was the 17th wide receiver drafted in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Biography
Gabriel Davis is 6’2” and 216 pounds. He played three years at Central Florida and will be 21 years old at the beginning of the 2020 NFL season. Davis was a three-star recruit coming out of high school in Florida. He is now second all-time in career receiving touchdowns at UCF. Accustomed to overcoming doubters, Davis worked his way into becoming one of the more popular “sleeper” wide receivers in the 2020 NFL Draft. Davis is ranked second all-time in school history in receiving touchdowns with 23.
College Production
Gabriel Davis broke out at the age of 19 (age during their first season with a 20% receiving dominator rating) in his second season for the Knights. Davis’s best season was his junior season at 20 years old. Davis had 72 receptions, for 1,241 receiving yards, and 12 scrimmage touchdowns for a receiving dominator rating (average percentage of their team’s receiving yards and receiving touchdowns) of 31.7% (50th percentile). Davis had above-average age-adjusted production. He averaged 815.7 scrimmage yards (73rd percentile) and 7.7 scrimmage touchdowns (80th percentile) per season for an average scrimmage dominator rating (average percentage of their team’s scrimmage yards and scrimmage touchdowns) per season of 11.2% (48th percentile). Not only did Davis generate impressive counting stats, but he was also efficient as well by averaging 0.82 scrimmage yards per team play (63rd percentile).
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Athleticism
[profiler]GabrielDavis[/profiler]
Gabriel Davis has a great height-adjusted speed score of 103.1 (78th percentile) after running a 4.54-second 40-yard time at the NFL Combine. He has a requisite burst score of 121.5 (53rd percentile) but a poor agility score of 11.67 (9th percentile). Davis is a well balanced wide receiver and meets the necessary athleticism thresholds to perform against NFL competition.
NFL Landing Spot
Buffalo Bills: The Buffalo Bills landed their offseason darling by trading for the disgruntled Stefon Diggs. Diggs is a great athlete, and can maximize any opportunity that he is given. Diggs will undoubtedly be the WR1 team, moving last year’s top dog John Brown to WR2 status. Brown’s 115 targets accounted for 22% of the team’s share. Slot man Cole Beasley wasn’t far behind Brown, accounting for 21% of targets. The team also has an emerging running back in Devin Singletary who was the fourth most targeted Bill on a per-game basis. Josh Allen struggled in 2019. Some believe that better days lie ahead for Allen. That might be the case, but the bottom line here is that this is an offense with an inaccurate quarterback, a fairly balanced run-pass split, and three veteran receivers with established roles. There is not a lot of opportunity here.
Rivals’ Rapid Analysis
Gabriel Davis is a talented wide receiver with an intriguing production profile. Davis has NFL athleticism and he uses his size and length to win vertically in contested situations. The Bills invested fourth round draft capital into Davis. He has a good deal of opportunity and will compete with Diggs, Brown and Beasley for targets from Allen.
Gabriel Davis is in Dave’s fourth wide receiver tier, his WR17-WR19 depending on other landing spots, and his 33rd-36th ranked rookie overall. Dave would target Davis in the late-third round of superflex rookie drafts (mid-third round in single QB). Gabby Davis had above-average age-adjusted production with a solid athleticism profile. Davis might be squeezed for targets early in his career competing with Dawson Knox, Cole Beasley, and John Brown for the secondary receiving role in Buffalo. However, long-term Davis has a chance to carve out a role for himself in Buffalo and be a decent depth receiver in deeper fantasy leagues. The problem with Davis’ fantasy value is Josh Allen and the run-first philosophy of the Bills’ offense will hurt his upside overall. In fantasy drafts, it makes more sense to target high-upside running backs and possibly a few other wide receivers with better landing spots.
Gabriel Davis is in Shawn’s fourth wide receiver tier, Shawn’s WR16, and Shawn’s Overall Rookie Rank 33. Shawn would target Davis in the mid-third Round in superflex rookie drafts (early third Round in single QB). Davis’ profile is one that fits well behind Diggs. This is a team with no big-bodied receivers behind him. John Brown held his own last year, but he is much better suited as a lower priority field stretcher option. Targets might be slim at first as Davis develops some rapport with Allen, but there is a shot for him to carve out a role beyond 2020, but tread cautiously, Allen’s limitations as a passer has severe ramifications for options like Davis that are lower down the depth chart.
This article was written in collaboration with Shawn Kennedy. For more analysis check out Dave and Shawn’s previous articles at Dynasty Football Factory. Additionally, you can also find Dave’s dynasty superflex rankings at Dynasty Football Factory. Stay tuned for more rookie wide receiver rapid reaction articles from us throughout the entire NFL Draft. We will also give you instant reactions for priority UDFA wide receivers to help you try and find the next Adam Thielen. Interact with Dave and Shawn on Twitter @ff_spaceman and @ff_walrus. You can listen to our rivalry on our podcast @ATaleofTwoRivals with @ff_banterman.
Information found in this article was gathered from @ff_spaceman’s College Prospect Database, PlayerProfiler.com, Sports-Reference.com, AirYards.com, and a prospect’s college team website.
