Glendale’s Davis signs with Los Angeles Chargers
Former Glendale High football star Michael Davis is enjoying a homecoming of sorts.
Though the former All-Area standout didn’t hear his name called during the three-day-long NFL draft that concluded Saturday, Davis received a different notice that same day.
The 6-foot-2, 196-pound defensive back was one of 15 players to sign a free-agent contract with the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday afternoon.
Davis recently completed four seasons with NCAA independent Division I program Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.
The speedster played cornerback in 48 games with the Cougars in which he made 30 starts and tallied 110 tackles, 17 pass breakups and one notable interception versus Michigan last season.
“I’ve watched Michael grow and mature over the last eight years into a man,” Glendale co-athletic director Pat Lancaster said. “The odds of a player making it to the NFL are so slim, but Michael has that ‘it’ factor.
“My emotions are all over the place. I’m so excited that he has this opportunity to perform at the highest level. I’m thrilled for his family. Glendale High is very proud.”
Davis is hoping to become the first Glendale High athlete to play in the NFL since linebacker Duane Bickett, who was drafted in 1985 with the fifth pick by the Indianapolis Colts out of USC. Bickett was voted the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1985 and earned a berth to the Pro Bowl two years later. Bickett played 12 seasons with the Colts, Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers.
Should Davis see game time, he would be the first athlete with Glendale ties to touch the field since Glendale Community College product Zack Williams played a game for the Carolina Panthers in the 2012 season.
Burroughs High alumnus Eben Britton was the last area player to participate in an NFL game when the offensive lineman played in 10 contests for the Chicago Bears in 2014. That season, former Flintridge Prep star Ramses Barden was also a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars practice squad.
While Davis, who has prototype NFL size for his position, didn’t garner much NFL attention following his senior season that ended with 23 tackles in seven games, he wowed at the BYU pro day.
On March 24, the former Glendale 200-meter sprinter ran the 40-yard dash in an impressive 4.34 seconds in front of a few NFL scouts. According to NFL.com, Davis’ time would have been fourth overall at the NFL combine.
Perhaps it’s fortuitous that Davis signed with the Chargers. Though seven other BYU Cougars inked free-agent deals, perhaps Los Angeles has the best reputation of giving such players a chance.
Current Chargers star Antonio Gates and recently-retired Malcom Floyd are a couple of former undrafted free agents who have risen to fame with Los Angeles, which boasts on its website that it’s accepted at least one undrafted free agent onto the “final 53-man roster for 20 straight years, which is the longest active streak in the NFL.”