New Orleans Saints Linebacker Demario Davis
Video Call with New Orleans Media
Friday, October 23, 2020
We just found out about Emmanuel Sanders and his positive test. How does that play into just how you have had to be next man up mentality even more so this year with things being pretty fluid?
"I think it's just the nature of the game. It's a next man up league. And you know you going to have guys up and down all the time, you just kind of keep rolling, that's even more in this season, with COVID and all this going on with that. You've just got to find a way to find a way. So no matter what happens in a game, if you lose a guy, the next guy up has to be ready. And all the guys on the team kind of pull their weight."
Do you think the bye week helped you guys kind of identify some of the areas where you needed to improve and maybe fixing like the communication issues that have kind of come back to bite you couple times this year?
"Yeah, anytime you get an extra week, a week off, you get a lot of things done from a recovery standpoint, guys that were probably nicked up, you give them a little bit more time to get back, you give them time to do a little more self-scouting, figure out areas where you can improve. So I think that's just the same around league and we just try to make the most of it as well."
Dennis Allen mentioned that the coaches emphasize a few specific things, little things here and there to kind of help you guys improve your play on the field. Just what were some of those things that they really emphasized? And what were some of the things that they highlighted that they want you to continue doing?
"It really just comes down to, at the end of the day alignment, assignment, technique, you have to align quickly, you have to know exactly what you're doing, you have to communicate, then you have to execute. And I think coach is always harping on that. When you get in a situation where you have a little more time to correct those things and talk about those things, you just harp on it even more. So I don't know if it was anything new, as much as it is just focusing and attention to detail and being better at those things."
Sort of going back to the COVID thing, I know you've played with a couple more teams, do you feel like this team is maybe better equipped to handle that type of adversity than some of the other teams you've played on in the past?
"I don't know. I wasn't on any other teams having to deal with this particular issue. One thing I know about Coach Payton is he's a very forward thinking guy and does a good job kind of foreshadowing what can be ahead. And so he prepared us a lot for this moment and this time kind of talking about the team that can stay the healthiest from not just an injury standpoint, but around COVID and protect themselves the best is probably going to have the best chance to win down the road. It's just a very different year, because you have that added element. And so I think our team has done a good job in going through necessary measures to put us in a position where we can limit as many cases or stories as possible. And so I think up to this point, we've done a good job at it, but it's an ongoing process. We're going to have to continue to do that as we get more and more down into the season, and now we've seen it kind of happen across the league more often. So we've just got to stay on top of it from the standpoint of where we're at and we have to increase in some areas, we have to do that as well."
It was very clear for the last two seasons that you, Craig Robertson, Cam Jordan, were kind of the hype men for the defense. So defensively through the first six, seven weeks of the season, do you guys feel like you've adjusted well, to kind of self-starting the defense? Do you think you've maximized the momentum and the motivation that you're going to for the defense?
"Yeah, from an energy and passion standpoint. Yeah, that's a big part of defense, right. You have to play with your hair on fire. You have to play passionate. You have got to have urgency. And you have to have a lot of pride. And so, I think from that standpoint we're going to always be those guys that try to get our guys energized and passionate playing, playing with a lot of swag. And it happens even more, and needs even more when you go through times of adversity, when you're not performing the way you want to perform, keeping guys rallied together, keeping guys locked in, keeping guys dialed in and keeping guys playing with a high level of confidence. And so yeah, we take that on within ourselves and have to this point and will continue to do so."
When you're watching film on Carolina's offense, don't give any way of the secrets here, but do you see a similarity between their offense and your offense? And does that help preparing for a team when you kind of face something similar in practice every day?
"Yeah, I mean, that's, only to be expected. (Joe) Brady coming from Sean's (Payton) coaching tree. And both of them (Brady and Teddy Bridgewater), being here and working together, so you're going to see a lot of similarities in some of the things that they do. You know, there are some unique things as well that you can see that Joe likes to do. But there's, a lot of similarities to it. It helps because we've seen a lot of those things, but you kind of have to still be prepared for everything that they do."
Has anyone on the defense or on the team in general kind of stepped up unexpectedly that hasn't necessarily been that voice or you know, the energy guy the last few years?
"I mean, we have a high energy group, we got it from all levels. A lot of our guys play with a lot of energy and are very vocal and passionate guys. From our older guys to our younger guys. I don't know if anybody has stepped up even more so. You see, Ceedy Duce (C.J. Gardner-Johnson) having a good year as always, you know he plays with a lot of energy for a young guy, to be as passionate, as vocal and playing at a high level as he does. Yeah, I think it just kind of fits our mold. But you got it all the way around. Marshon (Lattimore), Malcolm (Jenkins), P.J. (Williams), me, Cam (Jordan) you got a lot of guys that just play with a lot of energy. All of our guys do and play with a lot of swag. And that's what you see when we're out there."
