With the franchise tag for cornerbacks set to be more than $17 million in 2022, the likelihood of Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis remaining with the defending NFC South champions seems very small. With the Buccaneers having less than $7 million in cap space and reportedly still in win-now mode, the ability to retain a player whose market value is nearly triple becomes difficult.
The 25-year-old Davis plays the physical man-to-man style that a long list of teams could desperately use on their defense. According to Pro Football Focus, Davis ranks as the highest-rated cornerback of the free agency class after JC Jackson and would give whatever team that signs him the ability to take away an opponent's top receiving option. During his 10 games in 2021, Davis defended 11 passes and had one interception. Over that stretch, he would only allow 57.1% of his targets to be completed, and the Buccaneers would go on to have an 8-2 record.
While injuries are a concern for any team signing Davis to a long-term deal, the former second-round pick when healthy remains a top-tier talent in today's pass-happy NFL. Below we've ranked three teams that might be willing to look past Davis' training room visits, and lock him into their defense for the foreseeable future.
Carlton Davis Free Agency Landing Spots
One of the Seahawks' top moves they need to make this offseason is to add a corner to complete the back end of their struggling defense. While the Seahawks are another team in cap trouble, with roughly $34 million available before any re-signings, some room could be made to bring in Davis on a deal somewhere near the $19 million he is reportedly worth according to Spotrac's market value at the position. Davis would be an instant fit in the Seahawks' 4-3 scheme, giving them their first true shutdown corner since Richard Sherman's departure in 2018.
If the Seahawks can also bring back corner D.J. Reed and free safety Quandre Diggs to go with Davis and current strong safety Jamaal Adams, the Seahawks are a pass rusher away from being built eerily close to the blueprint of the “Legion of Boom” era.
One can never count out the wizardry of Bill Belichick and his penchant for signing free-agent cornerbacks. Back in 2014, just hours after being released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Belichick signed Darrelle Revis to a two-year, $32 million contract. Could history repeat itself and see a Buccaneer turn into a Patriot? There is a strong possibility it could if the Patriots decide to not franchise tag current cornerback J.C. Jackson.
The Patriots would need to replace Jackson's man-to-man coverage ability in short order, and Davis' physical play at the position bodes well to fill that void. While not quite the caliber of player that Jackson is, Davis could play as Belichick's top corner at a reasonable discount compared to what Jackson would likely get on the open market. Jackson has led the league in interceptions since 2018, which leads many to believe that a spin on the free market prize wheel would land him somewhere in the top-five contracts at the position, well above what they could bring Davis in at.
While the first two teams on this list are further ahead than the New York Jets, the Jets' available money to sign Davis is less difficult to navigate, with over $44 million available to fill out the roster in 2022. Addressing the need at cornerback is one of the top priorities of general manager Joe Douglas' offseason. Davis would be a welcomed addition to the young group prior to the NFL Draft, where the Jets can use their two top-ten selections (4th and 10th overall), and their other two selections in the first 38 picks to bring more firepower to a team that finished 2021 at 4-13.
Jets head coach Robert Saleh loves to play Cover 3 and Cover 4, which is where Davis also thrives. According to PFF's Arju Menon, Davis ranked better in zone coverage despite his physical outside corner play style. If the Jets could lock in Davis, it would allow them to focus more on other areas in the draft and give Saleh the talent required to build a defense similar to the one he built in San Francisco prior to joining the Jets.
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