Gabe Davis - Getting a Bum Rap From Some Fans

[Beck Water]

24 minutes ago, ToGoGo said:

In psych 101 they teach the Fundamental Attribution Error. Basically, it means that when observers see somebody do something a few times, they attribute it to that person's character, rather than whatever situation they are dealing with at that time. 

 

Gabe has been an ultra-clutch performer his entire career. He started extremely strong, but the last few weeks, coinciding with the rest of the team fighting through injuries and adversity, is going through a slump of his own and dealing with drops, likely related to rushing back from an injury.

 

Now, many fans are saying that Gabe is "not a WR2 and should stay a WR4" or that he is "unreliable". We all know about recency bias, but sometimes I am just AWED at the ability of some people to completely forget the unbelievable things somebody has done and give up on them the moment they go through a slump, no matter how uncharacteristic it is.

 

Gabe had a solid game yesterday. Had a drop on a difficult catch/great DB play. But now of course, he's dealing with the narrative being given to him by fans. Fans don't realize this, but by putting this narrative on his shoulders, they are making the mental climb out of his hole even MORE difficult than it has to be, rather than showing support. There is such a thing as the 12th man, but fans like to think it is only a positive effect. I'd argue the 12th man is having it's own case of the dropsies when they start turning on great players going through tough times. The fans are only hurting themselves. Let's hope Davis is more emotionally disciplined than the fanbase. 

 

Do players really listen that much to the fans?  Lord, I hope not.

 

You have interesting points from the study of psychology.  One wonders if you've expressed the same concerns regarding other Bills players who've been the target of fan ire after making 2 or 3 notable gaffs?

 

As far as the injury, from what we know that was Week 2, and I think most fans gave Davis some grace working back from it, but after the Pittsburgh game they were like "OK, Here We Go!"  Did he reinjure himself?  He hasn't been on the injury report since Week 5.  How long does rushing back from an injury in week 1 (which Davis clearly did) affect performance?

[DabillsDaBillsDaBills]

30 minutes ago, Yobogoya! said:

I agree with most of what you said but I’m curious as to your source for the wrong routes resulting in picks claim. Is that just an eye test by you or is there more concrete evidence of that? 
 

Either way, I was all for giving Gabe the opportunity to cement himself as a true star receiver this year and that just hasn’t happened. If we can land Beckham I’m more than ok with that at this point. 

 

Just an eye test on my part. The ones that stood out were INTs in the Jets and Vikings game. At the very least Gabe and Josh were not on the same page. 

[Bob in STL]

12 minutes ago, ToGoGo said:

 

Disagree strongly with both your points. 

 

Yes, he's ultra clutch. His performance against KC in the playoffs is in the pantheon of all time NFL performances, not just franchise. He had one of the true great performances in NFL playoff history. Did you forget? The toe tap catches that saved us in the Colts playoff game? The incredible 4th down catch that dragged the defender over the 1st down marker in the Bucs game? That's a better clutch portfolio than 95% of NFL players in history and we're halfway through his 3rd year, so I have no idea where you're coming from. 

 

As to your 2nd point, every player is different. I'd argue 5-10% of human beings have the ability to block out the negative energy of thousands and/or millions of people doubting them. Think of the mental health epidemic now, and those are just regular people. Some people are more sensitive to it than others. They may be absolute warriors, but if you've ever had your own family or parents doubt you for years about something you believed in, you know it weighs heavy, even as you continue to perform at a high level. Something about your "own people" doubting you, is worse than knowing it's coming from your enemies/opposing fans. All Bills fans are doing are shooting themselves in the foot by praying Davis is one of those rare human beings who can overcome his issues AND the issues of hundreds of thousands of people. 

 

 

Point #1 - He made some great plays and he missed some very routine plays. That is not "ultra clutch" in my view of the world.  He is a young player that is still developing and is still inconsistent. 

 

As for the all the mental health stuff in point #2, you said you took Psychology 101.  I took it 45 years ago so I will defer to you on all that stuff.  Especially today with the all social media impacts that now exist.  Psychology is not my expertise, maybe it is yours?  

 

As a fan I don't boo, I don't jinx, I don't root for injuries or harm to others.  I don't bet either.  I watch and enjoy the game and the competition.  The only football team I care about are the Bills, after that I am a sports fan looking at the skills on display.  

 

Cheers. 

[FireChans]

2 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Part of the problem is most Bills fans don't watch every other NFL game with the same scrutiny and don't realize that other superstar players make mistakes too.

Calling Gabe a superstar is proof positive you don’t watch every other game lmao

[Buffalo_Stampede]

IMO he’s a JAG.

[Scott7975]

I like Davis but if this team is going to get where we all want it to go then WR play has to be better.  So does Josh for that matter but this thread is about Davis.  Davis may have good stats but he also has bad stats.  He has a high drop%.  That is not just a stat that shows he drops too many balls but it also shows that his good stats are volume stats.  He also needs to be better at contested catches and run better routes.

 

At this point, this is not a reciever that should be paid like Diggs.  He may want that money when that time comes.

Edited November 25, 2022 by Scott7975

[ToGoGo]

6 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

Do players really listen that much to the fans?  Lord, I hope not.

 

You have interesting points from the study of psychology.  One wonders if you've expressed the same concerns regarding other Bills players who've been the target of fan ire after making 2 or 3 notable gaffs?

 

As far as the injury, from what we know that was Week 2, and I think most fans gave Davis some grace working back from it, but after the Pittsburgh game they were like "OK, Here We Go!"  Did he reinjure himself?  He hasn't been on the injury report since Week 5.  How long does rushing back from an injury in week 1 (which Davis clearly did) affect performance?

 

I think they can't avoid it if they wanted to. Social media, family, friends, their girlfriends showing them comments they see on IG, reporters trying to create stories, fans screaming onto the field, drunk guys making snarky remarks on nights out, etc. etc. 

 

It's not so much the content of the words, but the negative energy of it. It's one thing to ignore your neighbor when he calls you an "a-hole" for parking in the wrong spot, it's another to ignore 350,000 people that think you should get your livelihood (which you worked so hard for) taken away from you because you dropped a few balls or missed a few tackles. ESPECIALLY if it wasn't really your fault. Football is a complicated game, and I'd argue most fans don't understand it. I tune out myself sometimes listening to Eric on Cover1, so I know most other fans would too.

 

How many fans would've flamed Allen today for that missed Cook throw if Romo didn't point out it was Cook's fault? Players are not allowed to throw players under the bus in front of the media, so they cannot defend themselves. Regardless, fans don't react well to player's being honest about things like that. Look how Feliciano was treated after pointing some blame after 13 seconds. Maybe he was right, I don't know, or maybe he was wrong. But he would be in a better position to know than me, or 99% of fans. 

 

As for other Bills players. I think Star sat out 2020 partially due to the hate he received from fans in 2019. He was never the same. I think it weighs heavier on Edmunds than most people realize. I think it really hurt Allen his first few years, but he is one of those rare people that are anti-fragile, meaning adversity makes them better. To expect that from 53 players on the same team is asinine. 

 

Basically, when a fanbase turns on a player and makes them a whipping boy, the fanbase is playing Russian roulette. We're putting a player in an extreme position and then discarding them the second he has trouble handling it. We are literally sacrificing good players that might just be going through something temporary, and turning it into something permanent. And we're doing it to our own. Very Roman gladitorial-like. But most importantly, self-defeating and toxic. Workplace environments like that have high turnover. 

 

[Scott7975]

1 minute ago, ToGoGo said:

How many fans would've flamed Allen today for that missed Cook throw if Romo didn't point out it was Cook's fault

 

There are still people that blame Allen for that one lol.

[BADOLBILZ]

1 hour ago, KzooMike said:

I don't disagree, much in the way we have seen Diggs used this year. That is what I would also prefer vs going after a pure slot WR. In this layout, we go back to a place where Davis and even McKenzie have much more value. We just can't afford to waste the arm talent. Getting a high end compliment to Diggs would make this offense lethal. 

 

 

I thought Beane had learned his lesson when he acquired Brown, Beasley and Diggs in back-to-back offseasons and they started calling WR their "fastball".  

 

 

 

 

[thenorthremembers]

2 hours ago, SCBills said:

Sadly this is where he’s trending.  
 

You don’t pay for a high end WR3 in this offense.  
 

What will be interesting with how Buffalo deals with upcoming contracts is do they let people walk or do they trade guys before their deal is up for a pick?

 

Tennessee has two Gabe Davis type players entering this draft.  Both are big play WR’s with high WR2 potential.  I’m hoping we get one of them.  

 

 

Like Tillman from the Vols.  Still hoping Davis will be here as the #3 until his contract expires.   Good team guy, hard worker, just has way too many drops.

 

Would make sense to bring in OBJ on a 2-3 year contract and you'd be set at WR for a few years.

[CoudyBills]

54%

[peterpan]

He has way too many drops for a starting WR.  His drops have cost us games

[Buffalo_Stampede]

Gabe Davis catching a football.

 

[Joe Ferguson]

I expect Davis to drop balls 3 to 4 times a game. That's the kind of #2 receiver we have. I hope he gets benched soon.

Edited November 25, 2022 by Joe Ferguson

[Tanoros]

1 hour ago, RoscoeParrish said:

Consistency is the concern.  He’s not a WR2 if he needs limited snaps to catch his breath and perform. 

He’s playing more snaps than Diggs because of his blocking. If Diggs needs a breather every now and then, so does the guy who’s playing more snaps than him. 
 

Obviously Davis has room to improve, but your comment is completely wrong. Being out there as much as he is, has to be tiring and if it wasn’t, Diggs wouldn’t be coming out like he does. 

[BillsVet]

1 hour ago, BADOLBILZ said:

When you have Josh Allen throwing the football.........you don't just want a pure slot receiver.......you want a two stud WR's who can play inside or out.    Then one of them is always in the slot in 3 WR sets and their route tree isn't limited from the slot because they can do it all.    This leaves the other boundary spot for a deep ball specialist like Gabe Davis.   

 

Still don't understand OBD prioritizing RBs over WR's after drafting Josh.  You take a guy 7th overall in 2018, and the follow that with 3 2nd/3rd round RBs in the ensuing 4 drafts?  And now they've traded for Hynes and before that signed Yeldon?  When it comes to pass catching RB's they go all out, but receivers evidently aren't as critical to their offense.       

 

Compared to RB, even after their offensive spending in '19 with Brown and Beasley followed by the Diggs trade in '20, their highest pick at WR was the 4th on Davis in '20.  And before that Zay in '17.     

 

You get into trouble around here wanting to see them address problems before they become obvious, but their inability to give Josh more WR options is something they'll address in the off-season.  That's too late for this year.  People seem hopeful that OBJ will sign, but your off-season planning shouldn't bank on that situation working out.  

 

What's also interesting is they've historically under McD struggled with scheme/personnel versatility on defense as well so it's not surprising the receiver group is constructed this way.  

[Andy1]

Last year We had more weapons for defenses to guard. Diggs, Beasley, Sanders, Davis, Knox, RB. This year, Crowder got injured and has not been replaced. So we are running with Diggs and Davis, McKenzie sometimes, Knox sometimes and RB.
 

Davis is getting defended by better DBs since we do not have as many viable weapons. Defenses know what we are doing. They can shade their defense towards him and Diggs. Diggs can be unguardable. Davis isn’t that type of player. That is what is impacting his performance. Plus scheme issues with Dorsey has an impact. 
 

I am still hoping Dorsey can incorporate Hines and Shakir in roles that fit their skill sets. Our offense needs to diversify beyond Diggs and Davis. 

[DCofNC]

1 hour ago, ToGoGo said:

In psych 101 they teach the Fundamental Attribution Error. Basically, it means that when observers see somebody do something a few times, they attribute it to that person's character, rather than whatever situation they are dealing with at that time. 

 

Gabe has been an ultra-clutch performer his entire career. He started extremely strong, but the last few weeks, coinciding with the rest of the team fighting through injuries and adversity, is going through a slump of his own and dealing with drops, likely related to rushing back from an injury.

 

Now, many fans are saying that Gabe is "not a WR2 and should stay a WR4" or that he is "unreliable". We all know about recency bias, but sometimes I am just AWED at the ability of some people to completely forget the unbelievable things somebody has done and give up on them the moment they go through a slump, no matter how uncharacteristic it is.

 

Gabe had a solid game yesterday. Had a drop on a difficult catch/great DB play. But now of course, he's dealing with the narrative being given to him by fans. Fans don't realize this, but by putting this narrative on his shoulders, they are making the mental climb out of his hole even MORE difficult than it has to be, rather than showing support. There is such a thing as the 12th man, but fans like to think it is only a positive effect. I'd argue the 12th man is having it's own case of the dropsies when they start turning on great players going through tough times. The fans are only hurting themselves. Let's hope Davis is more emotionally disciplined than the fanbase. 

Could it be possible you are suffering from a delusion by attributing a couple of clutch plays he’s made as part of his character, while the truth is, he’s mediocre and not clutch? The stats would say that is more likely. 

25 minutes ago, Joe Ferguson said:

I expect Davis to drop balls 3 to 4 times a game. That's the kind of #2 receiver we have. I hope he gets benched soon.

For who?  The roster is pathetically weak at WR.

Edited November 25, 2022 by DCofNC

[Joe Ferguson]

6 minutes ago, DCofNC said:

Could it be possible you are suffering from a delusion by attributing a couple of clutch plays he’s made as part of his character, while the truth is, he’s mediocre and not clutch? The stats would say that is more likely. 

For who?  The roster is pathetically weak at WR.

There's still a chance OBJ will come to Buffalo.

[DCofNC]

Just now, Joe Ferguson said:

There's still a chance OBJ will come to Buffalo.

That would be great.