Former Buccaneers Player Rips Lions CB Carlton Davis

Former NFL guard says Buccaneers will not miss Carlton Davis.

Former Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis / Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Lions are counting on their revamped secondary to perform better than starters Cam Sutton and Jerry Jacobs did throughout the 2023 season.

Among the key acquisitions made by Lions' general manager Brad Holmes this offseason was trading for Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis.

The veteran defensive back caught the attention of Dan Campbell last year, as Detroit played the Buccaneers twice, once in the regular season and once in the playoffs.

Despite the optimism that Davis will be part of an upgraded Lions secondary unit, a former NFL guard and ex-Buccaneers player feels his old team won't miss the 27-year-old at all.

Ian Beckles played for the Buccaneers from 1990-1996 and finished his career with the Denver Broncos in 2000.

“Carlton Davis wasn’t good last year,” Beckles said on a recent edition of In the Trenches. “Carlton Davis was on the bad end of a lot of very big offensive plays. The one that comes to mind was Scotty Miller catching a bomb on him. I think Scotty Miller caught two balls last year. And one of them was on Carlton Davis deep against Atlanta.”

The retired lineman was recapping the Buccaneers offseason and weighing on how he felt general manager Jason Licht did during free agency.

“I didn’t think Carlton Davis had a very good year,” Beckles continued. “So Carlton Davis was traded to the Lions. You are also getting rid of a lot of cap space. A lot of cap money. When you bring in a Carlton Davis, are we better with Carlton Davis? I’m not sure. Because there were times last year when Carlton Davis was out and the Buccaneers played better defensively. They did. I saw it.”

Davis is entering the final year of his contract and is owed $14.5 million this season.