Crushing miscue drove a Patriots veteran into the most unlikely turnaround

Early on in free agency this past offseason, the New England Patriots made a big splash by signing the best cornerback of the class, Carlton Davis III, who was unfortunately leaving Detroit to join what wound up being greener pastures in Foxboro. His arrival drew immediate excitement, as he was set to become a lethal duo with Christian Gonzalez and, hopefully, make up one of the best cornerback duos in the league.

It took a bit longer to get there, since Gonzalez missed the first three games of the year, and once he returned to the field, it seemed Davis was getting more negative feedback on his performance than most had hoped.

That has remained the story surrounding the 28-year-old, fueling some fans' regret over his signing. But after what he accomplished against the Bengals, it's hard not to be thankful that he's on the team, even if one big mistake very easily could have changed their fate.

Making the entire situation even better is that the veteran used that moment to fuel his redemption arc, ultimately helping the Patriots walk out of Cincinnati with their tenth win of the year.

Carlton Davis III used near defeat as motivation to help ensure the Patriots left Week 12 with a win

Despite the narrative about his performance this season, Davis was mostly solid against the Bengals last Sunday, especially after being hit with what he referred to as "a BS call" in the fourth quarter when he was flagged for defensive pass interference on Tee Higgins.

It moved the Bengals' offense into field-goal range and eventually led to a touchdown, putting them within 3 points of the Patriots with little time remaining.

Davis shared that "lit a fire under" him, and he vowed not to let them lose the game after that, leading to a pair of pass breakups with the game on the line. That forced the Bengals to attempt a fourth-down conversion, which failed, sealing the win for New England, proving just how good Davis was in a crucial moment.

Not only that, but Davis has been impressive over the last three games, as he has not allowed more than one catch in that span. It's exactly the kind of production everyone was hoping for when he was signed this spring, and it looks like Davis is playing his best football down the stretch of the year, just as the playoffs come into focus.

It's exactly what the defense needs as they go into some tough matchups to end the season, especially with the Bills and Ravens still on the schedule.

If he can maintain this level of play for the remaining games, Davis will look like a much better signing than what he's been getting credit for, making it another home-run call by the Mike Vrabel regime.