Demario Davis is back for his third stint with the New York Jets.
Davis, 37, signed a two-year, $22 million contract with the Jets during free agency. An anonymous NFC executive had two words to share about Davis to ESPN NFL Insider Jeremy Fowler: “Fine wine.”
Davis didn’t crack ESPN’s top 10 off-ball-linebacker rankings, but he was named an “honorable mention” and received top-10 votes.
An Appropriate Description
Despite being 37 years of age, Davis is coming off a career season in 2025. Davis set a new career high with 143 total tackles.
Starting on the field, the Jets desperately needed an upgrade at middle linebacker.
The Jets lost their O Captain! My Captain! When C.J. Mosley hung up his cleats. Jamien Sherwood struggled trying to fill his shoes both on and off the football field.
Davis has a similar resume to Mosley and has an even louder voice from a leadership perspective on and off the field.
Why the Jets Brought Davis In
“When I look at what Woody (Johnson) and Darren Mougey and Aaron Glenn are establishing, why they’re bringing me in is to model what they want that culture to look like,” Davis said recently on SiriusXM NFL Radio via Kevin Patra of the NFL Media Group.
“When I say leadership, it’s not a title — it’s modeling. What does your lifestyle represent? Because more is caught than taught. So it’s not people are looking for me to come in and have all the right words. How can I be the example of what winning culture looks like? It’s the way that I attack the weight room, it’s the way that I study film, it’s the way that I take care of my body,” Davis added.
Davis has a chance to impact the Jets in 2026 and beyond. He has fought off Father Time successfully so far in his career. However, at the age of 37, he is closer to the end than the beginning. In a previous interview, he talked about playing until he was 40.
If he holds true to those words, then this two-year pact with the Jets would be his final contract at the NFL level.
If Davis can show these young players the way on the roster, then they can carry his legacy long after he leaves the football field.
On the surface, paying a 37-year-old linebacker a multi-year deal with $15 million guaranteed seems like an overpay. If anyone can live up to the contract billing, it is Davis.
He has only missed one game due to injury in his career. What’s his secret?
“Davis has a six-person team that travels to him from places like California, Arizona, and Texas, performing a variety of treatments and therapies that keep his body in peak condition. We’re talking about everything from old-school acupuncture to cutting-edge Tecar Therapy, which uses radiofrequency energy to reduce pain, improve range of motion, and facilitate tissue regeneration,” ESPN’s Rich Cimini wrote.
“By his estimate, he spends $500,000 to $1 million per year on body training and recovery,” Cimini revealed. Money well spent it seems.
Anonymous NFL Exec Has 2 Words for Jets LB Demario Davis