LOS ANGELES – The frequency at which Tyler Davis' name has been brought up during training camp would make one think 2025 represents an emergence for the second-year Rams defensive end.
To his teammates and coaches, though, it's nothing new. Davis has maintained the same consistency he showed as a rookie – it's just more pronounced when the head coach says he's due to be a major factor for the team this year.
"He's just continued to do what he did last year," defensive coordinator Chris Shula said this week. "He played really well last year. The fun thing about the offseason is you go back and look at all your cutups. You look at all your (tape), all these different instances and you're able to watch it a lot closer. You're not necessarily self-scouting or anything like that. Watching the guys, he was all over those tapes and playing really well. We really thought he was good last year during the season. I think we gained even more appreciation the closer we watched him, and he's just continued to do that."
Though he played just 28.4% of Los Angeles' defensive snaps in 2024, Davis still produced 20 stops (a play producing negative Expected Points added for the offense) across 283 snaps, according to Next Gen Stats.
"Tyler Davis was our unsung hero of our defensive line last year," defensive end Braden Fiske said this past week on Inside Rams Camp with J.B. Long and D'Marco Farr. "Just based off his contributions in the run game... We lacked early on in the season there, and he was able to step up a lot of times and play that nose tackle in our base stuff, which is a tough position because you're getting guys set, you're calling the front, you're taking on some hard double-teams, some scoops, some reach blocks in that middle of the defense. He held it down, and he's only gotten better."
From a technique standpoint, Fiske said Davis has taken the way he puts his foot in the ground and gets his hands on blockers "to a whole other level."
"I would say confidence," Davis told theRams.com, when asked what feels different now compared to his rookie year. "Also knowing that rookie year, you kind of have a lot thrown at you know, all this stuff is new. But just having a year underneath my belt and knowing what to expect, that right there, just that approach."
For the second-straight year, Davis joined teammates in working with Krav Maga expert and Aaron Donald's former trainer Al "Poodie" Carson.
"Just going from last year to this year, coming in as a rookie, you really don't know how it's going to be a feel for it, you really don't know how your pass rush is going to translate from college to the pros," Davis told theRams.com after that workout. "And now just coming in working with Poodie, just getting like some actual tools that you can actually work... you know he worked with the best of the best with AD, so just actually knowing it's going to work, I can't wait for real."
Last season, Davis carried the mindset of knowing his role and working toward a bigger one, but also doing whatever it took to help the team win. Clearly, the approach resonated with the rest of his teammates.
Echoing Shula, defensive end Kobie Turner praised Davis for his consistency and how often he was in the facility during the offseason. That consistency is already making an impact in elevating the depth of the Rams' defensive line – and perhaps its ceiling, too – entering the 2024 season.
"When you see the technical aspect… we have a lot of guys who are not the biggest guys, but to be able to succeed at this level, you have to have stellar technique in the way that he plays double teams," Turner said. "The way that he plays on the inside of his toes, the way that he strikes blocks. It's everything that you want. The top four right now of our D-line room, we're all practically interchangeable. He's one of those top four. I'm excited to continue to go to work with him. That guy shows up day in and day out, and he's consistent. You know exactly what you're going to get."
