Early life
Leonard grew up in Wortham, Texas. He is the only child of L.A. and Sammie Lee Davis, but has 21 half-brothers and half-sisters (L.A. had 11 children from a previous marriage, while Sammie Lee had 10 children from a previous marriage).
Davis attended Wortham High School, where he led his Bulldogs basketball team to the state championship in 1997 and the football team to the 2nd round of the 1996 Texas High School Football Playoffs. He was a Parade All-American in football and USA Today first-team All-American playing defense and offense for a school with fewer than 150 students. Davis also lettered in track.
He was inducted into the Texas High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2023. [1]
College career
Davis played college football at the University of Texas at Austin from 1997 to 2000, arriving in John Mackovic's final season> He intended to play defensive tackle and even started three games at that position, but he was moved to the offensive line after Mack Brown was named the new head coach. He played left tackle in his last two years.
During his career, Davis blocked for three consecutive 1000-yard season rushers in Hodges Mitchell and twice for Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams, who set the college career rushing record. In 1998, he helped the Longhorn go to and with the Cotton Bowl and finish ranked 15/16/
He was second team All-Big 12 in his junior season and helped the Longhorns win the Big 12 South, go to the Big 12 Championship Game, return to the Cotton Bowl and finish ranked 21/23. [1]
Prior to his senior year he was named a Playboy Preseason All-American and that year the Longhorns went to the 2000 Holiday Bowl, finishing the season ranked 12th. That season Davis was a first-team All-Big 12 selection, and a consensus first-team All-American. [2] He was also a finalist for the Outland Trophy and a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award.
Following his senior year, he played in the East-West Shrine Bowl. [1]
Davis was UT's fifth top-two pick in draft history and its first since Kenneth Sims went No. 1 in 1982.
In 2005, Davis was selected to the Big 12's 10th Anniversary Team. [3]
He was named to the Longhorn Hall of Honor in 2016. [4]
Professional career
Dallas Cowboys
On March 4, 2007, Davis signed with the Dallas Cowboys for a seven-year, $49.6 million contract with $18.75 million guaranteed, who were looking to replace the retired Marco Rivera. [7] At the time, the contract was criticized in the media, for the amount of salary cap space being assigned to a player who would play guard and who had an average performance in previous years. According to Forbes , Davis was the highest-paid NFL player and 19th overall athlete in the 12-month period ending in June 2007, earning $25.4 million. [8]
Davis was named the starter at right guard and would flourish in Dallas by going to the Pro Bowl in his first three seasons. He had an exceptional year in 2007, as he received Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors for the first time in his career. The Cowboys finished 13-3 and won the NFC East division, but suffered a disappointing first round playoff loss against the New York Giants (who would go on to win the Super Bowl).
In 2009, the Cowboys again won the division and also won their first playoff game in 13 seasons, but lost in the divisional round to the Minnesota Vikings.
In the 2010 season, Davis struggled and was even benched halfway through the game against Tennessee. His replacement injured his eye, Davis returned and didn't miss another snap all season. Nonetheless, he was released by the Cowboys the following July - after the lockout - to make salary camp room. [9] At the time he left Dallas, he had started every game of the previous 5 seasons.
Detroit Lions
After his release by Dallas, Davis tried out with the Lions during the offseason, but did not make the roster. In October, he had a workout with the Titans. [10]
On November 7, 2011, he signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Lions. [11] [12] After joining the team midway through the season, he was declared inactive for every game with the Lions and became a free agent when the season was over.
San Francisco 49ers
In the offseason, Davis had foot surgery and then visited the 49ers. [13]
On July 26, 2012, Davis signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers as a free agent. He was a backup but played in all 16 games and all 3 playoff games that year, sometimes lining up as tight end. He played 13% of offensive snaps and 19% of special teams snaps that year. [14] He helped the team reach Super Bowl XLVII. In the game, the last of his career, he played 6 plays on special teams and the 49ers fell to the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 34–31. [15]
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