Wyatt Davis (born February 17, 1999) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...

, and was selected by the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

in the third round of the

2021 NFL draft The 2021 NFL draft was the 86th National Football League draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland, Ohio from April 29 to May ...

. He has also played for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

Early life

Davis grew up in

Rancho Palos Verdes, California Rancho Palos Verdes is a coastal city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated on September 7, 1973, the city has a population of 42,287 as reported in the 2020 United States census. The city sits atop the bluffs of ...

, and attended

St. John Bosco High School St. John Bosco High School (SJBHS) is a Salesians of Don Bosco, Salesian all-boys college preparatory high school located in Bellflower, California, and is operated by the San Francisco Province of the order. The school is named after the ord ...

. Davis was rated a five-star recruit by

Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

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and

Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

and committed to play

at Ohio State over offers from

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, Notre Dame,

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

and Washington.

College career

Davis

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

his true freshman season in 2017. Originally a reserve guard during his redshirt freshman season, Davis started the final two games of the Buckeyes' season, the 2018 Big Ten Football Championship Game and the 2019 Rose Bowl, and played a total of 241 total snaps. As a redshirt sophomore, Davis was named first-team All-Big Ten Conference and a first team All-American by the Associated Press and the ''

Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...

''. Davis was named to the

Big Ten Network Big Ten Network (BTN) is an American sports network based in Chicago, Illinois. The channel is dedicated to coverage of College athletics, collegiate sports sanctioned by the Big Ten Conference, including live and recorded event telecasts, news ...

's second-team All-Decade team for the 2010s. Following the announcement that the Big Ten would postpone the 2020 season, Davis announced that he would opt out but returned when the conference reversed its decision, and he was named a unanimous All-American. He declared for the

following the season.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

Davis was selected in the third round (86th overall) by the

in the 2021 NFL draft. Heading into his inaugural

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

in the NFL, Davis was the starting right guard for the Vikings, but he also faced competition from Oli Udoh. After struggling heavily in the Vikings' preseason games, Davis was named the backup right guard behind Udoh for the 2021 season. Davis finished his rookie season having appeared in 6 games (0 starts), playing exclusively on special teams and recording zero offensive snaps. Davis competed for a starting job in training camp against Udoh, Jesse Davis, and rookie Ed Ingram. On August 30, 2022, Davis was waived by the Vikings as a part of final roster cuts.

New York Giants (first stint)

On September 1, 2022, the

signed Davis to their

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

New Orleans Saints

On September 8, 2022, the

signed Davis to their active roster. He was waived on November 8.

Arizona Cardinals

On November 9, 2022, Davis was claimed off waivers by the

. He was released on December 27, 2022.

New York Giants (second stint)

On December 28, 2022, Davis was claimed off waivers by the Giants. He was waived/injured on August 29, 2023, and placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

Cleveland Browns

On June 7, 2024, Davis signed with the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

. He was waived on August 26.

Personal life

Davis is the son of actor Duane Davis, mother Inge Davis and the grandson of

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...

r Willie Davis.

References

External links

Ohio State Buckeyes bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Wyatt 1999 births Living people Players of American football from Los Angeles County, California American football offensive guards Ohio State Buckeyes football players All-American college football players Minnesota Vikings players New York Giants players New Orleans Saints players Arizona Cardinals players Cleveland Browns players St. John Bosco High School alumni