Gabe Davis Earns Raise Ahead of Contract Year

Buffalo Bills receiver Gabriel Davis is entering a critical season for his future in the league.

Davis is entering the final season of his rookie deal, and his first three years have had some ups and downs. Of course, his most iconic performance came in the Bills' Divisional Round game against the Kansas City Chiefs in January 2022, when he had eight receptions for 201 yards and a playoff-record four touchdowns. While Davis has shown flashes of elite play, he has struggled with consistency throughout his career. 

As Davis looks to assert himself as the Bills' WR2 of the future, he may take some extra motivation. The former UCF Knights receiver got a noticeable raise thanks to the NFL's Proven Performance Escalator program, which is designed to help players drafted outside the first round earn a bit of extra money at the end of their rookie deals if they meet certain requirements.

To qualify for Level One PPE, players must participate in a certain amount of their team's snaps, 60 percent for second-round selections and 35 percent from those selected after, in two of their first three seasons, or average that amount through their first three seasons. Davis has averaged 68.8 percent of the Bills' snaps over his first three seasons, so he easily made the cut. As a result, Davis' base salary will rise to $2.743 million this season, equal to the Right of First Refusal RFA tender and over three times his previous base salary, according to Over the Cap.

There are also two higher levels of PPE, although no Bills players qualified for either of them. Level Two PPE requires players to participate in 55 percent of their team's snaps in each of their first three seasons, while Level Three PPE requires them to earn one Pro Bowl selection on the original ballot, so replacement nods don't count. Just three, players qualified for Level Three PPE this year. 

Davis is the only Bills player to qualify for PPE this year, but others may join him soon. Two Bills are projected to qualify for the program next year, with offensive tackle Spencer Brown on pace for Level Two and safety Damar Hamlin on pace for Level One. Of course, that's if they continue playing at the same rate they have been.

As Davis enters a pivotal year in his NFL career, a slight raise is sure to do wonders for his morale.