Every season that Demario Davis has played with the New Orleans Saints, he has done so with Dennis Allen as his defensive coordinator or as his head coach. So, no one has a better idea of the impact that Davis has had with the Saints, and no one better understood how deserving he was of being named to the NFC Pro Bowl team for the first time Wednesday.
The Saints (5-9) will play the Browns (6-8) on Saturday at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland.
Davis, a three-time All-Pro, leads New Orleans this season in sacks (6.5) and tackles (89). He also has an interception, five passes defensed and a fumble recovery. Davis joined the Saints as an unrestricted free agent in 2018 and only has missed one start, due to Covid protocols against Miami in 2021.
"It's awesome," Allen said. "I think it's kind of a long time coming. He's been a great part of what we've been able to do here over the last four or five years, been a great addition to our organization. Works extremely hard, great in the community, really the type of player that we're looking for so I'm glad to see that he gets recognized for that."
INCHING CLOSER: Cornerback Marshon Lattimore hasn't played since injuring his abdomen against Seattle on Oct. 9. He's listed as questionable for Saturday's game, after another week of limited participation in practice.
"I think he's as close as he's been (to playing)," Allen said Thursday. "He'll be another guy that we'll continue to monitor over the next couple of days, but I do think he's getting closer."
WASH OUT: Running back Dwayne Washington's status wasn't as optimistic. The key special team contributor was listed out, along with linebacker Pete Werner (hamstring) and receivers Chris Olave (hamstring) and Jarvis Landry (ankle) for Saturday's game.
Washington's injury designation is "illness," which Allen expanded on.
"He's been having what they call cluster migraines," Allen said. "So basically, it's a process that could go anywhere three to five weeks, is what I've been told, in terms of just migraine headaches. He'll be out this week."
IT'S THE WIND: Allen said of all the different facets that will combine for Saturday's forecast, it's the wind that most would have to be accounted for.
"You have to have contingency plans for anything, and I think wind is probably the biggest factor that affects the game," he said. "It's not cold, it's not snow, it's not any of those factors. It's more about the wind. We'll see what the wind is when we get there; I think they're calling for it to be pretty windy. But until you get into the stadium and really get a feel for what it's exactly like, you just have to have contingency plans either way."
