IR stint stands to cost Marcus Davenport his chance at notable incentive money

The Detroit Lions took a one-year flier on defensive end Marcus Davenport in 2024 free agency, and it seemed like a good situation for him if he could stay on the field. He looked good in the first game last season, then he missed Week 2 with a groin injury.

Davenport then suffered a triceps injury in Week 3 of last season against the Arizonal Cardinals, on a dirty play from Arizona Cardinals offensive tackle Paris Johnson, and he missed the rest of the campaign.

The Lions went back to the well with Davenport in March, signing him to a one-year, $2.5 million deal. There's no denying his durability concerns, even if Davenport would rather it not be brought up, so it landed as a no-risk investment for the team.

Between re-signing Davenport and the start of the season, Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes talked themselves into the idea the former first-round pick could stay on the field and be a force.

Davenport suffered what was later labeled a chest injury in Week 2, and heading into Week 3 against the Baltimore Ravens he was placed on IR with a pectoral strain. While the Lions' pass rush looks to be fine without him for at least the next four games, missing time will be impactful to Davenport in a very specific way.

IR stint is lined up to cost Marcus Davenport

As expected, the Lions didn't take much financial risk in Davenport's one-year deal. Just $1.65 million of that aforementioned $2.5 million in base value was fully guaranteed (a $1.35 million base salary and a $300,000 signing bonus).

The remaining $850,000 in base reported value is tied to $50,000 per game in active roster bonuses. At least $200,000 of that is now gone for Davenport, since he'll miss at least four games.

It's also not surprising the Lions put incentives in Davenport's contract which would allow him to bolster his earnings if he stayed healthy and performed well.

READ MORE: Lions just did something to Lamar Jackson the Vikings couldn't do

According to Spotrac, Davenport can earn $500,000 if he plays 40 percent of the Lions defensive snaps this season. He played 48 percent of the defensive snaps over the first two games, so missing around a quarter of the season (at minimum) starts to push that toward unlikely. A $1 million bonus for playing 65 percent of the defensive snaps is pretty much gone now.

Davenport also has a $500,000 bonus for eight sacks this season, and a $1.25 million bonus for 11 sacks. He has topped eight sacks in a season once in his career, and he has never reached double-digit sacks.

Both sets of incentive bonuses are non-cumulative, meaning if Davenport gets to the higher threshold(s), he gets that bonus, not both. It's safe to say $1 million of that possible $2.25 million total is out the window already, and any or all of the rest is in legitimate peril.

Even it was easy to expect, it's unfortunate Davenport is injured again. And also unfortunately, a minimum four-game absence will make it very difficult for him to earn some notable incentives.