NFL Rumors: Lions Trade for Carlton Davis; CB Won Super Bowl with Buccaneers

Doric SamMarch 11, 2024

Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have reportedly shipped away a member of their Super Bowl LV-winning squad.

Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Buccaneers traded cornerback Carlton Davis III to the Detroit Lions on Monday, ending his six-year run in Tampa Bay. ESPN’s Adam Schefter added that the Bucs second sixth-round draft picks in 2024 and 2025 and received a 2024 third-round pick in return.

Davis was a second-round pick by the Bucs in the 2018 draft. He saw immediate action as a rookie and quickly became a key member of the Tampa Bay defense. During the team’s postseason run in 2020 that culminated with a Super Bowl title, he appeared in all four games and racked up 22 total tackles.

This past season, Davis appeared in 12 games and totaled 52 tackles, nine passes defended and two interceptions. He played both of the team’s playoff games and recorded 11 tackles before the Bucs were eliminated by the Lions in the NFC Divisional Round.

Davis is joining a Detroit defense that ranked 27th in the league with 247.4 passing yards allowed per game last season. The team fared much better against the run, ranking second with 88.8 yards allowed.

The Lions are hoping to build off the momentum of their impressive 2023 season in which they won their first division title since 1993 after finishing with a 12-5 record. Detroit advanced to the NFC Championship Game and fell to the San Francisco 49ers after blowing a 17-point halftime lead.

Davis’ experience as a former champion should be a welcome addition to the Lions locker room next season.