Tight end Vernon Davis was traded to the Broncos before the deadline last season, but his arrival didn’t do much to help propel the team to victory in Super Bowl 50.
Davis caught 20 passes for the Broncos, but none in the final two weeks of the regular season or in the playoffs as he took on a minicule role for the team’s offense. Davis will become a free agent next week and a return to Denver is unlikely. The same could probably be said of a long-term deal after the way last season went, but Davis is still planning on several more years in the NFL.
Davis told Josina Anderson of ESPN that he wants to play four or five more years, which would put him in his late thirties with 14 or 15 NFL seasons under his belt. If he’s going to have that kind of longevity, a big improvement in 2016 is a must.
The marginal production in Denver continued a troubling trend for Davis dating back to the start of the 2014 season. After a 52-catch/13-touchdown 2013 season, Davis dropped to 26 catches for 245 yards for the 49ers that year and had 18 catches in 2015 before being traded to Denver. If Davis can’t move things in the other direction this year, he’s going to have a hard time getting close to his goal.