Davenport out vs. Bills

The Saints have ruled DE Marcus Davenport out for Thursday night's game against the Bills with a shoulder injury. New Orleans will also miss DE Tanoh Kpassagnon, leaving Carl Granderson as the likely playing-time leader opposite Cameron Jordan on the D-line. Granderson has just 1 sacks and 4 total QB hits on the season and hasn't cracked 40% playing time since Week 2. Jalyn Holmes is the only other healthy true edge player on the current roster. The Saints could struggle to pressure Josh Allen this week, though Jordan and DT David Onyemata stand out in that area.

The Vikings are signing EDGE Marcus Davenport to a one-year, $13 million deal, according to multiple reports. It's a good-sized "prove it" opportunity for the former first-round pick, who managed just a half-sack, 2 tackles for loss and 8 QB hits over 15 appearances with the Saints last season. Davenport topped out at 9 sacks (in 11 games) the year before but clearly disappointed across five years in New Orleans. Injuries played a big role. So we'll see whether he can hit 2023 healthy, stay there, and repay the Vikings for the opportunity. His arrival could signal the departure of EDGE Za'Darius Smith, who recently asked the team to let him pursue trade opportunities.

Saints DE Marcus Davenport is enduring "a particularly rough offseason health-wise," according to Katherine Terrell of The Athletic. The 5th-year edge player has had 2 surgeries for his injured right shoulder and 3 on his left pinky. The finger injury dates back to college, with the most recent setback being an infection developing after he broke a plate previously inserted into the finger. Davenport says the digit is down to a "nub." The combo of operations have kept Davenport out of workouts this offseason, and it's not yet clear whether he'll start training camp on time. "Training camp would be the goal," HC Dennis Allen said recently. "We've just got to wait and see where he's at." Davenport is in the final year of his rookie contract and coming off a career-high 9 sacks in just 11 games. If he can get all the way back far enough ahead of Week 1, there's plenty of upside. But Davenport also has yet to play more than 13 games in a season. So we'll be tempering expectations.

Saints DE Marcus Davenport (ankle) is active for today's game against the Falcons. Use him as planned in IDP lineups.

Saints DE Marcus Davenport (shoulder, knee) is active for tonight's game against the Dolphins. He should be in for plenty of snaps, as New Orleans has 2 reserve DEs on the COVID list.

Saints DE Marcus Davenport is questionable for Monday night's game against the Dolphins, with shoulder and knee injuries. He managed limited practices all week, though, and played his normal snap allotment in last week's win over the Buccaneers. We'd bet on Davenport playing. The late kickoff, however, obviously adds risk to waiting on him in your IDP lineup. Consider securing Saints DT David Onyemata -- or another available starter from the game -- as insurance if you plan to use Davenport.