Cornerback Carlton Davis III made an immediate impact in his first year with the Detroit Lions and now the team will decide whether to try to bring him back.
Davis, a seven-year NFL veteran, joined Detroit last offseason via trade and slotted in as the team’s top coverage player alongside rookie corner Terrion Arnold. He started 13 games at cornerback before he suffered a season-ending broken jaw in Week 15 against the Buffalo Bills.
The Lions traded one of their two third-round picks in the 2024 draft to acquire Davis in the last year of his contract. Now, the veteran cornerback is set to hit unrestricted free agency and the Lions will have to decide if they want to bid on his services for the next few years.
Davis, 28, finished with two interceptions, 11 passes defended, 56 total tackles and a 55.3% completion percentage allowed when targeted in his first season with the Lions. Arnold, Ennis Rakestraw Jr. and Amik Robertson are the cornerbacks under contract for 2025, while Davis, Khalil Dorsey, Kindle Vildor and Emmanuel Moseley will be free agents.
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How much will Carlton Davis III be paid in free agency?
According to Spotrac, Davis’ open market value in free agency is one of the highest of any cornerback who will be a free agent. The sports finance website projects Davis has a market value to earn a three-year, $43.9 million contract worth $14.6 million a year.
According to Over The Cap, the Lions have $49.1 million in effective cap space, the 10th-most in the NFL, heading into the 2025 offseason. The Lions have 31 players set to become free agents, but only a few starters like Davis, guard Kevin Zeitler, linebacker Derrick Barnes and defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike.
On Wednesday, the NFL informed teams the salary cap for the 2025 season would take another jump, similar to the $30 million jump it took in 2024. Though an official number has not been established for 2025 yet, the NFL told teams the salary cap would be somewhere between $277.5 million to $281.5 million per team. The jump would lower the impending impact of contract extensions given to Jared Goff, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Alim McNeill, David Montgomery and Taylor Decker.
According to Spotrac’s market value calculator, Davis is one of the top cornerback options available on the market, alongside Charvarius Ward (San Francisco), Byron Murphy Jr. (Minnesota), D.J. Reed (New York Jets), Rasul Douglas (Buffalo) and Asante Samuel Jr. (Los Angeles Chargers).
NFL teams can begin contacting pending free agents on March 10 and can officially sign players on March 12 after 4 p.m. when the new league year officially begins.
