San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis (85) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at Candlestick Park. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
San Francisco 49ers star TE Vernon Davis is enjoying a very successful season, as he has hauled in a whopping six touchdown passes with 466 receiving yards in total. Both Davis and Anquan Boldin have been, as expected, carrying the 49ers passing attack, and Boldin has 495 receiving yards and two TDs. Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers passing offense could be scary once Michael Crabtree and Mario Manningham come back, which could change their identity a bit from a team that unquestionably prefers to run the football.
I have an interesting statistic to share on Vernon Davis, and that’s his yards per reception average. Davis is averaging a whopping 17.9 yards per catch so far this season, which safely puts him as the leader at the TE position in that stat. He has 466 receiving yards (fourth among tight ends), but his 26 receptions aren’t even top ten at the position. It’s interesting to see that Davis is averaging the most yards per reception on the 49ers, and there’s no doubt that he’s one of the best in the game at stretching the seam.
According to Advanced NFL Stats, Vernon Davis travels more than 15 yards on 34.9% of his targets, which is also the highest among all tight ends with at least 15 receptions. Interestingly enough, the only other TE with a percentage over 30 and over 15 receptions is current Tennessee Titans TE and former 49ers TE Delanie Walker.
There is little doubt that Davis has been a key part of the San Francisco 49ers offense this season, and it’s incredible to think that he is having that big of an effect on the 49ers ability to stretch the field. Kaepernick is averaging a hefty 13.8 yards per completion this season, and that’s because Boldin is averaging 14.6 yards per catch and Davis is averaging 17.9.
Going deep hasn’t affected Davis’s catch rate negatively, as he is still hauling in 60.5% of his passes, which is significantly better than Kaepernick’s completion percentage of 56.6%. With the 49ers facing the Jacksonville Jaguars, Davis is clearly a must-start and one of the top TE options in fantasy.
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