Davis unfazed by challenges of first start
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/11668/davis-unfazed-by-challenges-of-first-start
TAMPA, Fla. -- St. Louis Rams quarterback Austin Davis was always going to start Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he didn't find out for sure until about 90 minutes before the game began.
With veteran Shaun Hill battling a thigh injury that kept him out all week, Davis said he had been preparing as though he was going to make his first NFL start since Monday. But in reality, Davis' trip to leading the Rams against Tampa Bay goes back much further.
A year ago, Davis was without an NFL job, spending two or three days a week providing guidance for the young quarterbacks at Westminster Christian Academy in Town and Country, Missouri.
On Sunday, Davis was calmly and efficiently leading the Rams to their first win of the season, a 19-17 victory over the Bucs, throwing for 235 yards on 22-of-29 passing with no interceptions or touchdowns for a rating of 99.1. Rams coach Jeff Fisher awarded Davis the game ball in the locker room afterward.
"It’s special," Davis said. "I can’t really describe it. I felt at peace out there, I felt at home and it had a lot to do with the guys I was around and how well we played and made plays around me."
To be sure, Davis had plenty of help in overcoming a seemingly never-ending pile of challenges in his first NFL start.
There was the mild uncertainty about whether he'd start, though Fisher said Hill was only going to be available to take shotgun snaps in an emergency. There was the lightning delay which sent the teams back to the locker room for nearly an hour midway through the second quarter.
Every time the Bucs seemed to gain an edge, Davis never flinched and performed under pressure. The performance was a surprise to outside observers but for those in the Rams locker room, it had been gradually building for most of the past three years. Davis, who was cut at the beginning of last season, was re-signed when Sam Bradford suffered a season-ending knee injury and has remained since.
"That’s what you need in the NFL, especially coming from your offensive leader, the quarterback," receiver Austin Pettis said. "To show that mental toughness throughout the game, he kept it even keel, we were up sometimes on offense and down a little bit here and there but he kept his head in there and made all the right plays that we needed."
An initial glance at Davis' numbers don't reveal anything too overwhelming and the Rams' total of 19 points against an injury-depleted defense isn't going to be enough to win many games in the rough and tumble NFC West but a closer inspection of Davis' performance revealed a moxie that was hard to deny.
Time and again, Davis stared down extra pressure from the Bucs defense and delivered a key throw, especially on third down. Davis attempted eight third-down passes, completing six for a total of 76 yards. Five of those completions resulted in first downs.
On the fourth quarter drive to set up kicker Greg Zuerlein's game-winning 38-yard field goal, Davis hit tight end Lance Kendricks for 13 yards on third-and-1 as he took a big hit and followed five plays later by firing a strike to Pettis down the seam for 27 yards on third-and-9.
"He was very poised today," Fisher said. "He did a great job ... nothing was overwhelming to him."
After the game, Fisher made it clear that when healthy Hill will reclaim the starting job. But even if Davis' debut wasn't enough to win a permanent job, it was more than enough to earn the trust of his team the next time it needs him.
