If you just looked at Marcus Davenport and Dean Lowry’s 2022 seasons statistically, you might scratch your head at the Minnesota Vikings bringing them in to bolster a defensive line that lost Dalvin Tomlinson and might see Za’Darius Smith play elsewhere too. The two newest Vikings D-linemen combined for just one sack last year.
That’s quite the contrast from their 2021 seasons, in which Davenport posted 9.0 sacks and Lowry took down opposing QBs five times.
When Davenport and Lowry were introduced to the Twin Cities media, both were willing/ready to talk about the different factors that played into their dip in sack production.
Davenport, who still ranked 15th in pass rush win rate by Pro Football Focus in 2022, seemed to feel that he strayed too far away from the things in place to help him finish plays when creating pressure.
“I go over my play and see that I didn’t capitalize as much as I would say I had some success with matchups and putting pressure [on quarterbacks],” Davenport said. “I wasn’t necessarily being the smartest player to know when to capitalize and how to capitalize by using my teammates and the scheme.”
The former Saint came into the NFL with huge expectations because New Orleans traded up for him in the first round of the 2018 draft but his career has been uneven thus far. While his PFF and pressure numbers have been strong, there has always been peaks and valleys in his sack production. He picked up 10.5 sacks over his first two years but only managed 1.5 in 2020.
“I just want to start from zero and work with my coaches and from there develop,” Davenport said. “I know there’s a lot of players who know their fast pitch and their switch up, I need to know my game and study other people’s game way better because I want to dominate. Just continue taking the next steps. As far as the past, I’m trying to let go of everything and keep looking forward.”
Injuries have also played a role in Davenport’s up and down career. He’s yet to play a full season, missing 19 total games in five seasons. ProFootballTalk reported that a shoulder issue was part of the delay in signing his contract with the Vikings.
Lowry’s 2021 was one of the most impressive by a defensive tackle in terms of sacks and pressures. He ranked in the top 20 in sacks among interior defenders and 15th in pressure total. Last season his pressure rate dipped and Lowry fell to 62nd among all DTs in pressures.
The veteran DT explained that circumstances played a role in those numbers going down.
“Production and stats definitely help to tell a story and I had more sacks and pressures in 2021 than I did last year and I think that partly is opportunity,” Lowry. “I had more third down reps that year and this past year we had a more crowded defensive line room and a lot of those reps were going to different guys in the room.”
Lowry’s explanation holds water. In 2021, he rushed the passer on 425 snaps, which was fourth most on the Packers behind Kenny Clark, Preston Smith and Rashan Gary. Last year he only rushed 197 times and Green Bay used eight different rushes on over 100 pass rush snaps.
That doesn’t mean the 6-foot-6 D-linemen was content with his 2022 season. Lowry talked with Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah about ways he could get back to being more effective at chasing opposing QBs.
“One thing that Kwesi brought up with me is that most of my career I’ve been a power rusher and it’s time to have a counter move to that and really improve my pass rush tool box to be more productive,” Lowry said.
The veteran DT said that getting a critique was the GM was different for him but he was interested in Adofo-Mensah’s opinions about how he could continue to grow in the second half of his career.
“It’s new to have a GM give positive feedback and things to work on. Also I’m coachable, I want to improve my game and having someone who’s obviously a bright football mind give you feedback from an outside perspective of things you can work on, that’s probably good for me to hear and improve my game,” Lowry said.
The Vikings’ cap situation put them in a position where they couldn’t swing for the fences on top free agents, which meant they were forced to look for potential steals on the market. If Davenport and Lowry throw back to 2021 with their play, they each have the potential to be some of the best bang-for-buck decisions this year in free agency. If neither player gets back on their game, it could be a long year in the trenches.
