The Washington Commanders declined the fifth-year contract option for linebacker Jamin Davis, according to two people with knowledge of the decision, putting their 2021 first-round draft pick on track to become a free agent next March.
The decision should come as no surprise; the extra fifth year, available to first-round picks and fully guaranteed when exercised, was projected to be worth $14.483 million and would have made Davis among the four highest paid linebackers in the NFL by average salary.
The fourth and final year of Davis’s rookie contract is now the most important of his young career.
Drafted 19th in the 2021 draft with the hope he would fill a years-long void for the Commanders at inside linebacker, Davis arrived with only one year of starting experience at Kentucky. His size, speed, and athleticism intrigued the Commanders, however, who believed they could mold him into a “mike,” or middle linebacker, and refine his pass rushing.
“He has a tremendous background — the kind of background I look for — [and is a] very smart, intelligent young man, plays the game at the right tempo,” former Commanders coach Ron Rivera said of Davis in 2021. “ … He’s what you look for in a football player.”
But Davis’s development was slow-going, and his performance in the 2022 season opener prompted public criticism from then-defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio. Davis’s play improved later in that campaign, and last season he made a number of big plays for Washington’s defense, totaling three sacks, two forced fumbles, four passes defensed, and 89 total tackles (eight for loss). But it wasn’t enough to match his draft status, let alone warrant one of the top salaries at his position. His 2023 season ended early after he suffered a shoulder injury in Week 13 that required surgery.
Davis’s off-field troubles hindered his chances even more.
In March 2022, he was charged with reckless driving in Virginia, a misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail. Davis appealed his conviction and avoided jail time — he was sentenced to 180 days, all of which were suspended — but his license was revoked for six months.
He was also charged with reckless driving three months before that incident, but it was reduced to an infraction.
Davis is also a defendant, along with Commanders cornerback Benjamin St-Juste and former safety Deshazor Everett, in a wrongful-death lawsuit that claims the three were racing their cars in Loudoun County when Everett crashed, killing his girlfriend, Olivia Peters, who was a passenger.
Peters’s mother, Kathleen Peters, filed the lawsuit in Loudoun County Circuit Court in December, seeking $25 million in damages and a jury trial. The case is still pending.
Davis’s status, while never solid with the regime that drafted him, became even more uncertain when the Commanders overhauled their front office and coaching staff earlier this year.
Led by General Manager Adam Peters, the Commanders signed more than two dozen free agents, including five linebackers. Frankie Luvu, signed to a three-year contract, and nine-time Pro Bowler Bobby Wagner headlined the group and are expected to start.
“We’re really pumped on [Davis], too, and finding the things that he does best and the role to do that,” Coach Dan Quinn said in March.
