| No. 29 Florida Tuskers | |
| Safety | |
| Personal information | |
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| Date of birth: December 30, 1978 | |
| Place of birth: Italy, Texas | |
| Height: 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | Weight: 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College: Sam Houston State | |
| Undrafted in 2002 | |
| Debuted in 2002 for the Dallas Cowboys | |
| Career history | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Stats at NFL.com | |
Keith Lamont Davis (born December 30, 1978 in Dallas, Texas) is an American football safety for the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League. He was signed by the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2002. He played college football at Sam Houston State.
Davis has also been a member of the Dallas Cowboys, Berlin Thunder, Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders.
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He was a two-time All-State and All-District wide receiver and defensive back for Class AA Italy High School in Texas. He was also a starter for the baseball and basketball team that won the 1997 Class AA State Championship.
He signed with Sam Houston State where he finished his career ranked fourth on the school’s tackle list with 339 stops.
As a junior, he was named Southland Conference Football League Defensive Player of the Year and team MVP after posting 99 tackles and 2 interceptions.
As a senior, he led his team with 96 tackles, 7 pass defended, 3 forced fumbles, 1 sack and 1 fumble recovery. He earned All-America honors from the American Football Coaches Association and All-Southland League honors as a senior.
Davis was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent for the 2002 season. He made the Cowboys' practice squad initially, and subsequently the active roster, playing eight games as a backup safety and on special teams. He was credited with five tackles from scrimmage, two quarterback pressures, one pass breakup and eight tackles on special teams.
Before the start of the 2003 training camp, he was shot in the right hip and left elbow around 2:20 a.m. outside the Dallas Gentlemen's Club. Davis had driven to the club after closing time to pick up a friend. The friend was sitting at a table where an altercation broke out, and spilled outside to the parking lot, culminating with his shooting while defending her girlfriend. While he did nothing to provoke the incident, and was regarded as an unwitting victim, head coach Bill Parcells believed Davis should not have placed himself in a questionable situation and released him from the team.
Davis did not play football that season, but rejoined the club in 2004, after Parcells gave him a second chance, re-signing him in January 2004 to play in NFL Europe. Davis took advantage of the opportunity and was named all-league, while helping the Berlin Thunder to the World Bowl XII championship. During that season, he became a dynamic cover player on special teams and a fan favorite for the Cowboys.
He blossomed in 2005 after playing primarily on special teams his first two seasons in the league. He started 15 games at free safety and finished fourth on the team with 68 tackles. He also led the club in special teams tackles, with 16, and had a forced fumble. His strong play convinced the New Orleans Saints to sign him to a restricted free-agent offer sheet, but the Cowboys retained the three-year veteran by matching the offer.
In 2006 he was shot for the second time in just three years. This time he was randomly shot in the back of the head and in his right thigh, while driving to church at 5:30 in the morning on a Dallas freeway. He drove himself to the hospital and was later released.
In 2008, the Cowboys did not want to lose Davis' leadership and special teams skills as an unrestricted free agent, but he wanted a chance to start and that wasn't going to happen again in Dallas, because of his weaknesses in pass coverage.
He left as one of the top special teams players in franchise history.
On March 11, 2008, Davis signed with the Miami Dolphins, reuniting him with team vice president Bill Parcells. The Dolphins released Davis on August 27, a day before the team's final preseason game. The move was noted as strange by members of the media, as it was learned that Davis was on the team's flight manifest to New Orleans and was even assigned a room number.[1] However, Davis' agent stated it was merely a business decision.
Just days after being released by the Dolphins, Davis was re-signed by the Dallas Cowboys on August 31, 2008. It said a lot about how his teammates felt about him, when he was named captain despite being on the roster only a few days.
He led the Cowboys in special teams' tackles with 20 in 2008
Davis was signed by the Oakland Raiders on May 21, 2009. He was released on July 13, 2009.