.jpg) Davis with the New Orleans Saints in 2021 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 56 –New Orleans Saints | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born: | (1989-01-11)January 11, 1989 (age 36) Collins, Mississippi, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 248 lb (112 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Brandon (Brandon, Mississippi) | ||||||||||||||
| College: | Arkansas State (2007–2011) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2012: 3rd round, 77th pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2024 | |||||||||||||||
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Demario Davis (born January 11, 1989)[1] is an American professionalfootballlinebacker for theNew Orleans Saints of theNational Football League (NFL).[2] He was selected by theNew York Jets in the third round of the2012 NFL draft. He playedcollege football for theArkansas State Red Wolves. Davis has also played for theCleveland Browns.
Davis' mother gave birth to him when she was 16, and his father was a career enlisted soldier in the US Army and combat veteran. Davis attendedBrandon High School inBrandon, Mississippi, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, basketball, and track. Infootball, he played mostlywide receiver as sophomore and junior, helping lead the team to its 14th playoff appearance in the last 16 years with a 7–5 record. As a senior, he recorded 81 tackles, six interceptions and one sack, while also receiving over 30 passes for 386 receiving yards with four scores. He was also a starter on the Brandonbasketball team and competed as ahigh jumper with the varsitytrack & field team. He was named to the Clarion Ledger All-Metro team in football.[3]
Davis playedcollege football for theArkansas State Red Wolves. He recorded a team-leading 80 tackles as a sophomore and earned various all-conference honors in his junior and senior years.[3]
Davis attended theNFL Scouting Combine inIndianapolis, Indiana and completed all of the combine and positional drills. On March 27, 2012, he attended Arkansas State'spro day and chose to perform the 40-yard dash (4.52s), 20-yard dash (2.72s), 10-yard dash (1.63s), vertical jump (38.5"), and positional drills. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Davis was projected to be a third round pick by the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the ninth best outside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com.[4]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 Demario Davis' NFL Combine Workout |
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | 32 in (0.81 m) | 9 in (0.23 m) | 4.52 s | 1.63 s | 2.72 s | 4.28 s | 7.19 s | 38.5 in (0.98 m) | 10 ft 4 in (3.15 m) | 32 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine/Arkansas' State'sPro Day[5][6] | ||||||||||||
TheNew York Jets selected Davis in the third round (77th overall) of the2012 NFL draft.[7] Davis was the tenth linebacker drafted in 2012.[8] On May 31, 2012, the Jets signed Davis to a four-year, $2.81 million contract with asigning bonus of $618,000.[9][10]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
| Draft Room Phone Call to Demario Davis |
Throughouttraining camp, Davis competed against veteranBart Scott for the job as the starting weakside linebacker.[11] Head coachRex Ryan named Davis the third-string backup weakside linebacker to start the regular season, behind Bart Scott andJosh Mauga.[12][13]
He made his professional regular season debut in the Jets' season-opening 48–28 victory against theBuffalo Bills.[14] On September 23, 2012, Davis made his first career tackle during a one-yard punt return byMarcus Thigpen in the first quarter of a 23–20 overtime victory at theMiami Dolphins in Week 3.[15] In Week 6, Davis was promoted to the Jets' primary backup weakside linebacker role after Josh Mauga was placed oninjured reserve after tearing a pectoral muscle the previous week.[16] On October 21, 2012, Davis earned his first career start in place of Bart Scott and recorded a season-high seven combined tackles during a 29–26 loss at theNew England Patriots in Week 7.[14] He remained as the starting weakside linebacker for the next two games (Weeks 8–10) as Bart Scott recovered from a toe injury he sustained in Week 7.[17] He finished his rookie season in2012 with 36 combined tackles (31 solo) and a fumble recovery in 16 games and three starts.[18] He registered 15 of his tackles while playing on special teams.[19]
Davis entered training camp slated as a starting inside linebacker after the Jets' new defensive coordinatorDennis Thurman switched from a base4–3 defense to a base3–4 defense.[19] Head coach Rex Ryan named Davis andDavid Harris the starting inside linebackers to begin the regular season in 2013.[20]
He started in the Jets' season-opener against theTampa Bay Buccaneers and recorded eight combined tackles in their 18–17 victory.[21] On September 22, 2013, Davis collected six combined tackles and made his first career sack during a 27–20 win against the Bills in Week 3.[21] He sacked quarterbackE. J. Manuel for a three-yard loss in the third quarter.[22] On November 3, 2013, Davis made four tackles, deflected a pass, and made his first career interception during a 26–20 win against theNew Orleans Saints in Week 9.[21] He intercepted a pass thrown by quarterbackDrew Brees that was originally intended forBenjamin Watson and was tackled for no gain in the first quarter.[23] In Week 13, he collected a season-high ten combined tackles (six solo) in the Jets' 23–3 loss to the Dolphins.[21] He finished the season with 107 combined tackles (63 solo), a pass deflection, a sack, and an interception in 16 games and 16 starts.[18]
Head coach Rex Ryan retained Davis and David Harris as the starting inside linebackers to begin the 2014 season, along with outside linebackersCalvin Pace andQuinton Coples.[24] On September 14, 2014, Davis recorded six combined tackles and sacked quarterbackAaron Rodgers twice in the Jets' 31–24 loss at theGreen Bay Packers in Week 2.[25] In Week 10, he collected a season-high 12 combined tackles (11 solo) and broke up a pass during a 20–13 victory against thePittsburgh Steelers. It was his fourth game with over ten combined tackles in 2014.[26] He finished his third season with 116 combined tackles (79 solo), five pass deflections, and 3.5 sacks in 16 games and 16 starts.[18] On December 30, 2014, New York Jets' ownerWoody Johnson fired general managerJohn Idzik Jr. and head coachRex Ryan after the Jets finished with a 4–12 record in 2014.[27]
Head coachTodd Bowles chose to retain the Jets' starting linebackers and officially named Davis, Harris, Coples, and Pace the starters to begin the regular season.[28] In Week 3, he collected a season-high 13 combined tackles (six solo) in the Jets' 24–17 loss to thePhiladelphia Eagles. The following week, Davis made a season-high two pass deflections and a tackle during a 27–14 win at the Dolphins in Week 4.[29] Davis finished the2015 season with 90 combined tackles (57 solo), two pass deflections, and two sacks in 16 games and 16 starts.[18] Although the Jets finished second in theAFC East with a 10–6 record they did not qualify for the playoffs. He earned the 15th highest overall grade among 60 qualifying inside linebackers byPro Football Focus.[30]
Davis became anunrestricted free agent after the 2015 season and reportedly received interest with multiple teams, including the Cleveland Browns.[31]
On March 16, 2016, theCleveland Browns signed Davis to a two-year, $8 million contract that includes $4.10 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $2 million.[32][33] Head coachHue Jackson named Davis andChristian Kirksey the starting inside linebackers to begin the regular season, along with outside linebackersNate Orchard andEmmanuel Ogbah.[34]
He made his Cleveland Browns' regular season debut in their season-opener at the Eagles and recorded seven combined tackles in their 29–10 loss.[35] In Week 10, Davis recorded three combined tackles and sacked quarterbackJoe Flacco during a 28–7 loss at theBaltimore Ravens.[35] On December 18, 2016, Davis collected a season-high tying ten combined tackles (eight solo) in the Browns' 33–13 loss at the Bills in Week 15.[35] He finished his only season with the Cleveland Browns with 99 combined tackles (59 solo), two pass deflections, and two sacks in 16 games and 16 starts.[18]
On June 1, 2017, the Browns traded Davis to the Jets in exchange forCalvin Pryor.[36] Davis became expendable after Browns' defensive coordinatorGregg Williams switched to a base4–3 defense that required a single middle linebacker. They also acquiredJamie Collins from theNew England Patriots and had Christian Kirksey andJoe Schobert develop into viable starters.[37]
He entered training camp slated as a starting inside linebacker, but saw competition fromBruce Carter,Julian Stanford,Spencer Paysinger,Frank Beltre, andConnor Harris.[38] Head coachTodd Bowles named Davis andDarron Lee the starting inside linebackers to begin the regular season.[39]
He started in the Jets' season-opener at the Bills and collected a season-high 14 combined tackles (eight solo) and was credited for half a sack in their 21–12 loss.[40] On September 24, 2017, he recorded a season-high 11 solo tackles, assisted on a tackle, and deflected a pass in the Jets' 20–6 win against the Dolphins in Week 3. In Week 14, Davis collected 13 combined tackles (ten solo) and half a sack during a 23–0 loss at theDenver Broncos. He finished the2017 season with a career-high 135 combined tackles (97 solo), a career-high five sacks, and three pass deflections in 16 games and 16 starts.[18] His 135 combined tackles finished sixth in the league in 2017.[41] He earned an overall grade of 87.3 fromPro Football Focus and received the eighth highest among all qualified linebackers in 2017.[42][43]
Davis became an unrestricted free agent in 2018 and received interest from multiple teams as he was considered to be the top linebacker available in free agency. Davis stated he intended to return to New York and considered the Jets his home. The Jets and Davis failed to reach an agreement and Davis claimed the Jets never officially made him contract offer, but it was possibly due to his asking price.[44] On March 19, 2018, the Saints signed Davis to a three-year, $24 million contract with $16 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $9.20 million.[45][46][47]
In Week 4, Davis recorded 11 tackles, two for a loss, and two sacks in a 33–18 win over theNew York Giants, earning himNational Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week.[48]
In Week 10 against theAtlanta Falcons, Davis recorded a team-high 11 tackles and sackedMatt Ryan once in the 26–18 win.[49] He was ranked 67th by his fellow players on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2020.[50]
On September 12, 2020, Davis signed a three-year, $27 million contract extension with the Saints.[51]
In Week 1 against the Buccaneers, Davis recorded his first sack of the season onTom Brady in the 34–23 win. In the Week 3 against the Packers, Davis sacked Aaron Rodgers in the 37–30 loss.In Week 10 against theSan Francisco 49ers, Davis recorded a team high 12 tackles and sackedNick Mullens once during the 27–13 win.[52] He was ranked 64th by his fellow players on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2021.[53]
Davis appeared in and started 16 games for the Saints in the 2021 season. He finished with three sacks, 105 total tackles (75 solo), and seven passes defended.[54] He was ranked 74th by his fellow players on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2022.[55]
On June 24, 2022, Davis signed a one-year contract extension with New Orleans.[56] Davis played in all 17 games for the Saints, and was on the field for all 1,132 defensive snaps played by the team. In doing so, he became the only linebacker to do so in 2022, and the first to accomplish the feat sinceJordan Hicks did so for theArizona Cardinals in 2019.[57] He was ranked 43rd by his fellow players on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2023.[58]
Davis started in all 17 games for the Saints in the 2023 season. He finished with 6.5 sacks, 121 total tackles (74 solo), four passes defended, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.[59]
On March 11, 2024, the Saints agreed to terms of Davis' contract, extending him through to 2025.[60] Davis missed the first game of his career due to injury in week 4, with a hamstring malady causing him to be absent from a matchup against theAtlanta Falcons.[61]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2012 | NYJ | 16 | 3 | 36 | 31 | 5 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | −4 | 0 |
| 2013 | NYJ | 16 | 16 | 106 | 63 | 43 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | NYJ | 16 | 16 | 116 | 79 | 37 | 3.5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | NYJ | 16 | 16 | 90 | 57 | 33 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | CLE | 16 | 15 | 99 | 59 | 40 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | NYJ | 16 | 16 | 135 | 97 | 38 | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0 |
| 2018 | NO | 16 | 16 | 110 | 74 | 36 | 5.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | NO | 16 | 16 | 111 | 87 | 24 | 4.0 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | NO | 16 | 16 | 119 | 73 | 46 | 4.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | NO | 16 | 16 | 105 | 70 | 35 | 3.0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | NO | 17 | 17 | 107 | 54 | 55 | 6.5 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | NO | 17 | 17 | 121 | 74 | 47 | 6.5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 0 |
| 2024 | NO | 16 | 16 | 136 | 69 | 67 | 2.0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 210 | 196 | 1,393 | 887 | 506 | 44.5 | 58 | 4 | 5 | 1.3 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 28 | 0 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2018 | NO | 2 | 2 | 22 | 14 | 8 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | NO | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | NO | 2 | 2 | 14 | 12 | 2 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 5 | 5 | 43 | 30 | 13 | 1.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Davis is a devoutChristian.[62] His cousin was former NFL quarterbackSteve McNair.[63] Davis married in 2012 and has five children, 4 girls and one boy, with his wife Tamela.[64] During the 2019 season, Davis was fined $7,000 by the NFL for wearing a headband in Week 3 with the words "Man of God" on it, though the fine was later repealed.[65][66]
