Before the New Orleans Saints took the field in 2022, they made sure that one of their best players would be on the roster for the next few seasons. 

A one-year contract extension was given to linebacker Demario Davis, and he helped the Saints finish second against the pass and fifth in total defense, which was the team's only bright spot during a 7-10 campaign. 

Doug Farrar of USA Today's Touchdown Wire ranked the top 11 linebackers around the NFL recently. Landing at the No.6 spot was Davis just after Dre Greenlaw of the San Francisco 49ers and right before Tremaine Edmunds of the Chicago Bears. 

If Davis isn’t the most underrated linebacker in the NFL, he’s on a very short list. He’s been a great player for a long time, but the 2012 third-round pick of the Jets has made the Pro Bowl (2022) and the First-Team All-Pro team (2019) just once each. Davis has combined the required traits for his position at a high level for the last half-decade, and he did that again last season. Davis had a career-high nine sacks, two quarterback hits, seven quarterback hurries, 63 solo tackles, 43 stops, and he allowed 31 catches on 42 targets for 276 yards, 209 yards after the catch, two touchdowns, one interception, four pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 96.9.-Doug Farrar, USA Today

All Davis did last year was continue the stellar play he's exhibited since he came into the NFL. 

The former third-round pick logged 109 tackles which included 10 tackles for loss, the third-highest of his career. Also, Davis had his career-best pass-rush grade (85.9) and his second-highest marks in coverage (79.8) and defense grades (82.7) per Pro Football Focus. 

Davis has played for two other teams. The New York Jets, who drafted him in 2012, plus the Cleveland Browns, and he's always been productive. 

During his two stints with the Jets that totaled five seasons, Davis never registered less than 90 tackles besides his rookie campaign (had three seasons over 100). He only played one season for the Browns but he racked up 99 tackles. 

Davis is about as consistent as they come from the linebacker spot, and he doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon which bodes well for the Saints remaining one of the league's top defensive units.

Saints’ defender gets major respect from national media

He’s certainly earned it.

Feature image via Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports