Detroit Lions add familiar face in DE Marcus Davenport to help pass rush

The Detroit Lions have found a pass rusher to pair with Aidan Hutchinson — and it's a familiar face for defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.

The Lions agreed to a one-year deal with Minnesota Vikings defensive end Marcus Davenport on Monday, NFL Network reported. The deal has a maximum value of $10.5 million, and includes a $6.5 million base salary.

A first-round pick by the Saints in 2018, Davenport played three of his five seasons in New Orleans with Glenn and Lions head coach Dan Campbell. He signed a one-year deal with the Vikings last spring, but played just four games before an ankle injury ended his season.

Davenport, who'll play this fall at 28 years old, had two sacks playing opposite Danielle Hunter in Minnesota last season and a career-high nine sacks with the Saints in 2021. He has 23½ sacks and seven forced fumbles in six seasons.

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The Lions entered the offseason looking for pass rush help for a defense that ranked 27th against the pass and 22nd in sack percentage last year.

Hutchinson led the Lions with 11½ sacks in 2023, while defensive tackle Alim McNeill was the only other lineman with more than two sacks.

The Lions return John Cominsky and Josh Paschal in 2024 and will re-sign exclusive rights free agent James Houston, but are expected to let rotational players Charles Harris and Romeo Okwara walk in free agency.

In his four years as GM, Holmes has trended towards signing players to short-term deals in free agency to avoid onerous big-money contracts and cap charges.

FLASHBACK:'Interesting' Marcus Davenport was on the Lions' radar in 2018 NFL draft

The Lions entered Monday with more than $40 million in cap space, and agreed to a new three-year deal with left guard Graham Glasgow before the start of the free agent negotiating window at noon. They hope to sign quarterback Jared Goff and receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown to contract extensions this offseason, and eventually will have similar large deals to do with Hutchinson and right tackle Penei Sewell, too.

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.