Vernon Leonard Davis (born January 31, 1984) is an American football tight end for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Maryland. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers sixth overall in the 2006 NFL Draft. Upon entering the league, Davis signed a five-year, US$23 million deal that made him the highest paid tight end at the time. In 2009, Davis co-led the NFL in touchdown receptions.
In the 2011–12 NFL playoffs with the 49ers, Davis caught the game-winning touchdown pass from Alex Smith against the New Orleans Saints, referred to by fans and the media as "The Catch III". In 2015, Davis was traded to the Denver Broncos, where he won Super Bowl 50 with the team. The following season, he signed with the Washington Redskins.
Davis attended Truesdell Elementary in Washington, D.C, and later attended Paul Public Charter School for middle school. However, Paul did not have a football team, and thus, Davis played for neighboring MacFarland Middle School. He would go on to attend Dunbar High School in Washington. He was a letterman in football, basketball, and track & field. Rated as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Davis was listed as the fourth-best tight end prospect of the class of 2003. While attending at Dunbar, he was teammates with future New York Jets kick return specialist and wide receiver, Josh Cribbs.