During Anthony Davis’ one-year hiatus from the NFL, the offensive tackle made some comments on Twitter that irked his former organization and teammates.
In one series of tweets last November, for instance, Davis called out starting left tackle Joe Staley for his play against the Seahawks, particularly in allowing Seattle safety Kam Chancellor to stop the 49ers’ outside running game on Staley’s side.
“That safety shouldn’t be setting the edge against the run. Period. That’s almost disrespectful,” Davis tweeted. Later, he followed up by admitting he was calling out Staley. Davis also had some biting criticism of general manager Trent Baalke.
But now that Davis has come out of retirement and has been reinstated to the 49ers active roster, he and Staley and Baalke apparently have patched things up, and the path is clear for Davis to get a fresh start with the Niners.
Staley told reporters this weekend at 49ers training camp that he and Davis are good.
“We’ve had all the conversations that we need,” Staley said, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. “… We’ve worked everything out we needed to work out.”
Added Baalke: “Everything is positive at this point. Now it’s (about) blending back in and going to work.”
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Davis mostly worked with the third-team offense over the weekend, but that could quickly change because Davis came into camp a much lighter and fitter player. That had been a concern before camp. After sitting out a year, would Davis be ready to compete for a job in Chip Kelly’s faster-paced offense?
Apparently, yes.
Davis told the media Sunday that he’s down to 332 pounds after weighing as much as 370 pounds in 2014. Staley told reporters that Davis is “fitter than I’ve ever seen him.” Kelly was equally impressed.
“You can tell just watching him move around yesterday, he’s worked,” Kelly said. “It’s not like he woke up one day last week and said, ‘Hey, I think I want to play football again’ and hasn’t been doing anything. He’s been doing something.”
Davis’ return could be a significant storyline for the 49ers this training camp. If Davis can regain his form and claim his right-tackle spot, it could be a major upgrade for the offensive line.
