Bleacher Report lists Marcus Davenport among riskiest 2023 free agents

Look, this isn’t very surprising, but it is noteworthy. Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport listed New Orleans Saints defensive end Marcus Davenport among the riskiest players in the 2023 free agent class, owing to his extensive injury history and uneven level of play.

That’s something Saints fans can verify. Davenport played a career-high 15 games last season and finished with a career-low sacks total (0.5), with former undrafted free agents getting snaps ahead of him by year’s end. That’s hardly the return you’d expect from someone the team invested two first-round draft picks in during their bold 2018 trade, vaulting halfway up the first round to get him.

Here’s what was written about Davenport’s prospects in free agency at Bleacher Report:

If you’re the top player at a premium position in a weak crop of free agents, demand for your services will likely be high. That demand will drive up the amount teams are willing to pay.

Even after the release of veterans like Frank Clark and Bud Dupree, this year’s class of edge-rushers isn’t especially impressive. That means New Orleans Saints edge-rusher Marcus Davenport could be headed for such a bonanza.

A first-round pick of the Saints back in 2018, Davenport has shown flashes of Pro Bowl potential, including a 39-tackle, nine-sack effort in 2021. However, he has yet to consistently be a difference-maker.

Davenport’s production went off a cliff last season, and he finished with only a half-sack in 15 games. He also lost playing time to Carl Granderson.

Durability has been an issue for Davenport throughout his career, too. He has missed at least two games in all five of his NFL seasons.

Davenport may be a good player, but he has shown little to indicate that he’s the force whom the Saints thought they were getting when they traded up to draft him. With that said, it takes only one team that believes it can unlock Davenport’s potential for him to get paid. Given how many clubs need help on the edge, there could be several who buy into that.

If one gives Davenport close to the $23 million per season that Spotrac estimates his market value to be, it will likely be viewed as a boondoggle a few years down the road.

So where could Davenport find a big free agent offer? One team that jumps out is the Atlanta Falcons, who hired his old position coach Ryan Nielsen as their new defensive coordinator. He knows Davenport well and that relationship could mean a lot if Davenport is looking to start over in a new locker room around the league. At the same time, it wouldn’t be too big a shock if Davenport draws little attention on the open market and calls it a career sooner than expected, much like former Saints first-round pick Sedrick Ellis. Whatever’s next for Davenport, we’ll wish him the best.

More 2023 free agency

Demario Davis named Saints' best free agent signing of the last 5 years

What an incentive-heavy contract for Michael Thomas could look like

Saints, All-Pro special teams ace J.T. Gray reach deal on 3-year extension