SmashMouth

The New Orleans Saints let defensive end Trey Hendrickson get away in free agency after he had a breakout 2020 season no one saw coming.

So now, more than ever, the Saints need defensive end Marcus Davenport to have a breakout of his own.

Davenport has shown impressive glimpses during his first three seasons. But thanks in large part to injuries, the 24-year-old has not yet made the kind of consistent impact the Saints were hoping for when they paid a steep price to trade up and land him with the 14th pick in the 2018 NFL draft. They traded away their 2019 first-rounder and 2018 fifth-rounder to move up 13 spots.



Now they also have a big decision looming on whether to double-down on that investment. They have to decide whether to pick up Davenport’s fifth-year option by May 3, which would cost them a guaranteed $9.5 million in 2022.

That would be a significant wager, considering the Saints’ severe salary-cap constraints. And if they do it, they’ll be banking on his potential more than his production.

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