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Gabe Davis talks reunion with coach Chad Hall, how he fits with Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars
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- Gabe Davis talks reunion with coach Chad Hall, how he fits with Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars
Gabe Davis thought he'd be playing with Calvin Ridley when he agreed to join the Jacksonville Jaguars just a couple of hours after the NFL's free agency negotiation period began last week.
Instead, Ridley chose a boat-load of money and the Tennessee Titans , while Davis gets an opportunity to play for a team close to home.
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Davis was born in Fernandina Beach, just 30 miles northeast of EverBank Stadium. He was raised in Sanford, playing football at Seminole High School. He next played for three years at UCF before being selected in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills .
"As soon as I heard Jacksonville, I was like, 'Thank God, they called. Thank God.' I wanted to come back to Florida, I wanted to be around guys that I knew, a coast that I loved and the team is great," Davis said at his introductory press conference last Thursday.
New Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Gabe Davis holds his introductory press conference after signing with the team as a free agent.
Big money target: Jaguars sign former Bills WR Gabe Davis to to three-year, $39 million deal
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It wasn't just the location that dictated Davis' decision, either. The Jaguars have defeated the Bills twice since he entered the NFL, once in 2021 and again last year in London. He's gained plenty of respect for the team.
"Shoot, we could never beat them," Davis said with a laugh. "Came here and as soon as they sent it in, negotiating was in and then boom, I was like, 'Yeah, I'm a Jaguar man.' A pretty easy decision."
It helps that former UCF teammate Jacob Harris played for the Jaguars last year and relayed plenty of good things about head coach Doug Pederson.
Gabe Davis excited for 'family' reunion with Jaguars WR coach Chad Hall, playing with Trevor Lawrence
WR Gabe Davis: Signed by Jacksonville Jaguars (previous team: Buffalo Bills)
While it's nice that Davis will return to his home state, far closer to his gym ( The Draft Academy ) located in Winter Park (Fla.) than he used to be, joining the Jaguars is even more special for the soon-to-be 25-year-old wideout who gets to reunite with his former receivers coach Chad Hall, who joined the Jaguars in the same role last year.
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Hall coached with the Bills from 2017-22 as an offensive assistant and then a receivers coach.
"Chad is like family. I was with him for three years in Buffalo. Family first, and no matter if I was here or somewhere else, I still talk to Chad on the regular. He's definitely a dear friend of mine," said Davis.
During his time in Buffalo, Davis accounted for 163 catches for 2,630 yards and 27 touchdowns in 64 games. He boasts a yards-per-catch rate of 16.7, a metric that hasn't been matched by a Jags receiver for years.
Though he's yet to play with him, Davis is familiar with Lawrence.
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While the two were in high school, they attended the Nike Spark Camp in Atlanta . That was when Davis first got his eyes on Lawrence, who would go on to become one of the best quarterbacks in Clemson history.
"I'm looking at Trevor, and I was a nobody. You got this Clemson quarterback here, who as you saw him throw, you saw how talented he was. Now for it to be years and years later, being able to play with him is awesome. He's such a great player, from what I heard, he's a great leader. I'm just excited to be able to see it first-hand," said Davis.
Davis also has mutual friends with Jaguars receiver Christian Kirk and has met Zay Jones a couple of times in the past. Now, the trio of wideouts will work together to help Lawrence and the team's offense move forward past a down end to the 2023 campaign.
'I can do it all': What Gabe Davis feels he brings to the Jaguars' offense
Dec 23, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Buffalo Bills wide receiver Gabe Davis (13) celebrates after scoring a 57-yard touchdown during the second quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports
The addition of Davis gives the Jaguars a big-bodied receiver similar to Jones, who joined the team before the 2022 season. He's listed at 6-foot-2 and 225-pounds.
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Shared by Davis via Instagram, the receiver ranked first in numerous categories from 2020-23, including first-down rate (78.9%), touchdown rate (17.8%), average depth of target (16.3 yards), yards per reception (17.3) and explosive reception rate (45.4%). He's 10th in total touchdowns with 33. The players ahead of him average 612 targets compared to Davis' 336 targets.
Simply put, Davis has taken the league by storm through his first four seasons in the NFL, but has plenty of untapped potential as he enters his fifth year, first with the Jaguars. He's confident in his skills, too.
"I feel like I can do it all. I did so much when I was at Buffalo, whether if it was catching deep balls or lead blocking through the C gap, I'm very versatile and I can play any time of game they need me to play, whichever week, any other week," Davis said when asked where he fits in Jacksonville.
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He surely will be asked to do that plenty.
"I feel like I got good leadership skills and I was voted back-to-back hardest worker (in Buffalo) as well. That's what I try to prove to my teammates; that they can trust me because they see the sacrifice that I put in for my team and they see that I love this game and I don't take it for granted because it's brought me so much," said Davis.
"I try to show the guys that when times are tough, they can depend on me."
Now, Davis will get an opportunity to show that to the Jaguars.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82 .
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Ex-Buffalo receiver Gabe Davis feels at home with Jaguars
