‘Dancing With the Stars’: How Good Was Vernon Davis During His NFL Career?
The 29th season of Dancing with the Stars premiered on ABC on Sept. 14, 2020, as fans were introduced to this year’s stars and got to see which professional dancers are paired with them. Over the years, many professional athletes have competed on the show and some have done well. This season, former NFL tight end Vernon Davis is one of the athletes competing.
So, prior to making his dancing debut recently, how was Davis as an NFL player? Was he any good? Here’s a look at his football career.
Vernon Davis was one of the country’s best tight ends in college
Davis played college football at Maryland, and after only catching five passes for 59 yards in 2003, Davis became one of the country’s top tight ends over the next two seasons.
In 2004, he caught 27 passes for 441 yards and three touchdowns. He then caught 51 passes for 871 yards and six touchdowns in 2005. Davis’ 871 receiving yards in 2005 led Maryland’s entire conference that year, and helped him become a consensus All-American, according to the Big Ten Network.
For his career in college, Davis had 1,371 receiving yards and averaged 16.5 yards per catch. He then entered the 2006 NFL draft and was one of the top prospects in that year’s class. The San Francisco 49ers ultimately selected him with the sixth overall pick.
He was a Pro Bowl tight end in the NFL
After going to the 49ers in the draft, Davis later became one of the NFL’s best tight ends. In his fourth season in 2009, Davis caught 78 passes for 965 yards, and had a league-leading 13 touchdown catches. He also earned his first Pro Bowl selection that year.
Davis ultimately spent nine-and-a-half seasons with the 49ers. He caught 441 passes for 5,640 yards and 55 touchdowns in those seasons, and he earned two Pro Bowl selections. He was also a part of some good 49ers teams as he played in one Super Bowl and two NFC Championship Games with them.
The 49ers traded Davis to the Denver Broncos in 2015. He then played in nine regular-season games with the Broncos, but also ended up winning a Super Bowl while in Denver that year.
From 2016 through 2019, Davis finished his NFL career with the Washington Football Team. He had some excellent seasons too, gaining 583 receiving yards in 2016 and 648 in 2017. The 2019 season was ultimately his final one in the NFL, as he has since retired.
For his career, Davis caught 583 passes for 7,562 yards and 63 touchdowns. According to StatMuse, Davis’s 63 touchdown catches are sixth all-time among tight ends.
So, was Davis good during his NFL career? Yes, he definitely was.
Vernon Davis is starring on ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Davis made his Dancing with the Stars debut on Sept. 14, 2020. Fans ultimately found out that he got paired up with Peta Murgatroyd, and the partners danced the foxtrot to “All of Me” by John Legend, according to Us Weekly.
He danced well too as he scored a 17.
Dancing with the Stars is not the first time Davis has worked on TV since retiring from football. He also hosted a reunion show for The Challenge on MTV earlier in 2020.
It appears that Davis is proving that he can be successful at much more than just football.
Stats courtesy of Sports Reference and Pro Football Reference
