When the New Orleans Saints traded with the Green Bay Packers to move up 13 spots in the 2018 NFL Draft, they selected defensive end Marcus Davenport from the University of Texas at San-Antonio (UTSA). The Saints knew that Davenport required some fine-tuning but they fell in love with his tremendously high ceiling.

Davenport’s career is already off to a great start as he earned a league-high pro football focus grade of 71.8 among all rookie edge defenders. The next closest player was Denver Broncos’ Bradley Chubb with a score of 68.9.

Davenport played in 13 games this season, but he was a rotational player with fellow defensive end Alex Okafor. In his 13 games, Davenport recorded 4.5 sacks, 12 quarterback hits, and 21 total tackles including six tackles for loss.

Although Davenport’s numbers aren’t exactly jaw-dropping, his presence was certainly felt every time he stepped on the field. If Davenport continues to develop quickly, the Saints will have one the league’s premier edge-defending duos with Davenport and veteran Cameron Jordan.

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