{"id":813781,"date":"2026-03-15T13:35:28","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T13:35:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/813781\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T13:35:28","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T13:35:28","slug":"browns-dt-kalia-davis-profile-free-agents-history-includes-injuries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/813781\/","title":{"rendered":"Browns DT Kalia Davis profile: Free agent\u2019s history includes injuries"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">The Cleveland Browns needed some inside defensive line help after the 2025 season had concluded. There were some answers already in place, but also some question marks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">What didn\u2019t need to be solved was rookie DT Mason Graham\u2019s (6\u2019-4\u201d, 315 pounds) season. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawgsbynature.com\/cleveland-browns-nfl-draft\/109765\/browns-2025-nfl-draft-mason-graham-stats\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">He came as advertised<\/a> after being selected fifth overall in last year\u2019s NFL draft. He was voted to the NFL All-Rookie Team and was durable, playing all 17 games with 17 starts.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"_1eezmj01\" href=\"https:\/\/platform.dawgsbynature.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2026\/03\/quote-bubbles.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0,0,100,100\" data-pswp-height=\"225\" data-pswp-width=\"225\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\"><img alt=\"\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"w91vxg0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-image:url(&quot;data:image\/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns='http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg' %3E%3Cfilter id='b' color-interpolation-filters='sRGB'%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'\/%3E%3CfeColorMatrix values='1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 100 -1' result='s'\/%3E%3CfeFlood x='0' y='0' width='100%25' height='100%25'\/%3E%3CfeComposite operator='out' in='s'\/%3E%3CfeComposite in2='SourceGraphic'\/%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'\/%3E%3C\/filter%3E%3Cimage width='100%25' height='100%25' x='0' y='0' preserveAspectRatio='none' style='filter: url(%23b);' href='data:image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mN8+R8AAtcB6oaHtZcAAAAASUVORK5CYII='\/%3E%3C\/svg%3E&quot;)\"   src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/quote-bubbles.jpg\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawgsbynature.com\/cleveland-browns-analysis\/119850\/browns-newest-fa-add-can-blow-up-opposing-run-games-replace-shelby-harris-in-2026-kalia-davis-mason-graham-maliek-collins-mike-hall\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">RELATED: BROWNS\u2019 LATEST FREE AGENT COULD FILL HARRIS\u2019 ROLE<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">But that is where the virtuousness ends, and the unanswered questions begin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">DT Mike Hall (6\u2019-3\u201d, 300 pounds) was taken in Round 2 a year before and was supposed to be the player that Graham became. Someone who could plug up the middle of the line and stop the run, and give some occasional pass rush. But so far, he hasn\u2019t played much, with just 17 games in his two seasons and just three starts. Plus, his production is nowhere to be found, with 14 tackles last season and 11 tackles this year.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"_1eezmj01\" href=\"https:\/\/platform.dawgsbynature.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/73\/2026\/03\/gettyimages-2252580841.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0,0,100,100\" data-pswp-height=\"2952\" data-pswp-width=\"4428\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\"><img alt=\"\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"w91vxg0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-image:url(&quot;data:image\/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns='http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg' %3E%3Cfilter id='b' color-interpolation-filters='sRGB'%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'\/%3E%3CfeColorMatrix values='1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 100 -1' result='s'\/%3E%3CfeFlood x='0' y='0' width='100%25' height='100%25'\/%3E%3CfeComposite operator='out' in='s'\/%3E%3CfeComposite in2='SourceGraphic'\/%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'\/%3E%3C\/filter%3E%3Cimage width='100%25' height='100%25' x='0' y='0' preserveAspectRatio='none' style='filter: url(%23b);' href='data:image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mN8+R8AAtcB6oaHtZcAAAAASUVORK5CYII='\/%3E%3C\/svg%3E&quot;)\"   src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/gettyimages-2252580841.jpg\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Getty Images<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Another DT, Maliek Collins (6\u2019-2\u201d, 310 pounds), was brought in during last year\u2019s free agency period and played admirably with 12 starts. He is a 10-year veteran who doesn\u2019t get huge tackle numbers (25), but makes up for it with a lot of QB hits (13), tackles for loss (7), and pressures (15).<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">DT Shelby Harris ended the year as a free agent, and DT\/DE Sam Kamara was a restricted free agent. He was the dependable one who got some good pass rush in addition to his run-stopping abilities. The Browns did not even tender Kamara, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">On the roster still is Adin Huntington (6\u2019-1\u201d, 281 pounds), who has the versatility to play inside or out. But GM Andrew Berry wasn\u2019t satisfied with the room. Maybe Berry would be content if Hall were showing more than he has, especially since Cleveland used a valuable second-round draft pick on him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">In the meantime, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawgsbynature.com\/cleveland-browns-free-agency\/119851\/browns-free-agency-kalia-davis-shelby-harris\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Berry inked DT Kalia Davis<\/a> (6\u2019-2\u201d, 310 pounds) from the San Francisco 49ers to a one-year $3 million deal to come in and compete. His first name is pronounced kuh-LEE-uh. The defensive tackle room usually is just four guys who rotate in all game, so the competition this year will be fierce.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Who is Davis? What does he offer the Browns?<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Davis, age 27, grew up in Pensacola, Florida, and attended West Florida Tech High School. He played basketball as a power forward and averaged 7.6 rebounds a game. He was a linebacker on their football team. As a senior, he had 107 total tackles, nine sacks, and two interceptions. Davis was named First Team Florida 5A All-State and named to the Pensacola News-Journal First Team All-Area squad. In his junior campaign, he earned Honorable Mention All-State honors as well as Pensacola News-Journal First Team All-Area.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">In high school, he weighed 235 pounds with a height of 6\u2019-2\u201d. He was ranked a three-star prospect by rivals.com, and was recruited heavily: Florida, Appalachian State, Central Arkansas, Florida A&amp;M, Mercer, Western Kentucky, Alcorn State, Alabama A&amp;M, McNeese, Buffalo, Troy, Bowling Green, South Alabama, Kent State, Coastal Carolina, Louisiana, Middle Tennessee, UCF, East Carolina, Tulane, Cincinnati, Georgia State, Mississippi Valley, North Carolina Central, Samford, and Southeastern Louisiana.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Davis chose UCF and was there all four years, but played three seasons. The UCF coaching staff moved him from linebacker to defensive line as his body expanded, and he was able to carve out a substantial role. He redshirted his true freshman year, and then played in 10 games in his freshman season of 2018, recording 17 tackles.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">As a sophomore, Davis played in all 13 games with nine starts. He had 27 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, one batted pass, 2 hurries, three sacks, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. He was named First Team All-American Conference and earned AAC All-Academic Team honors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Things got a bit jumbled in 2020 during the height of the pandemic. Davis opted out of the season to protect himself from the COVID-19 virus, but again earned AAC All-Academic Team honors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Coming back as a senior, he tore his ACL in Week 5, which required surgery and ended his season. In those five games, he had 17 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 3 hurries. Despite playing a handful of games, he was named AAC Defensive Player of the Week once.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">He received an invitation to the Combine. His measurables included: 30 bench press reps (225 pounds), wingspan &#8211; 6\u2019-8\u201d, arm length \u2013 33 5\/8\u201d, and hand span \u2013 9.5.\u201d He did not run at the Combine due to his continued rehab, but before the injury was clocked at 4.89 in the 40.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Davis had gotten a reputation for his strength and line play as an interior defensive lineman rather than his speed testing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Needless to say, when Davis opted out of his junior year because of the pandemic, he was counting on a really good senior year to support and elevate his draft status. When he had the knee injury, that killed his status. NFL scouts now had to rely on his sophomore year to gauge his abilities. He had a draft statue of Day 3 or even going undrafted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">He was taken by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL draft. Davis inked a four-year contract for $3.8 million.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Davis missed his entire rookie season due to the continuation of his knee injury and was placed on the PUP list in August.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">In 2023, he had a good camp, but played sparingly in three games with zero starts because of a high-ankle sprain.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Training camp for 2024 was not a good sign. Davis played just 30 snaps in the 49ers\u2019 preseason opener when he injured his knee. It was later identified as structural damage behind his kneecap. Two days later, he had yet another surgery. At the conclusion of training camp, San Fran kept him on the final roster, then placed him on IR, which retained his rights and allowed the team to bring him back at some point during the season.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsportsbayarea.com\/nfl\/san-francisco-49ers\/kalia-davis-injury-update-practice-window-open\/1789010\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">according to NBC Sports<\/a>, said this regarding the progress of Davis:<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1teeyfa8 ls9zuh1\">\u201cI thought it was one of his best games. It was really unfortunate. He played awesome throughout the whole game. That\u2019s why he and us were really surprised that he had such a tough injury. It\u2019s a setback, but he had such a good camp, such a good game, he\u2019s in a good spot to bounce back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Davis was activated on October 5, just before the Week 5 contest against the Arizona Cardinals. He finished with 12 total tackles in 13 games played, with one batted pass and one interception.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">In Week 5 of the 2025 season, he broke his hand in the 26-23 overtime win over the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday Night Football. He had surgery the following day. The roster was full of injured defensive players for most of the season for San Fran, and Davis was just one of them. It was expected that he could return in two or three games wearing a club.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">He <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbssports.com\/fantasy\/football\/news\/49ers-kalia-davis-has-ankle-injury\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">later had a slight ankle issue<\/a>, but did not miss any games after being ruled as questionable for Week 10.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">For his career, Davis has played in 33 games with 17 starts, 41 total tackles, 4 tackles for loss, three batted passes, three QB hits, 1 interception, 2 hurries, 1 knockdown, 1.5 sacks, and 3 missed tackles.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Davis has missed quite a few games because of injuries. What does he bring to Cleveland? More depth. That\u2019s what the Davis signing is about. Brown head coach Todd Monken wants to dominate the trenches, and that takes bodies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">When healthy, Davis will flash short-area quickness with an explosive burst. He has good strength, but has limits due to his marginal arm length. He lacks violent hands and doesn\u2019t shed blockers as he should. But Davis will play with good leverage despite average bulk.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Cleveland Browns needed some inside defensive line help after the 2025 season had concluded. There were some&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":813782,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2054],"tags":[86,85,54,3295,2337,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-813781","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cleveland-browns","8":"tag-browns","9":"tag-cleveland","10":"tag-cleveland-browns","11":"tag-cleveland-browns-free-agency","12":"tag-clevelandbrowns","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116233460170446372","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=813781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813781\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/813782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=813781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=813781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=813781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}