Clemson football: Mario Goodrich signs with the Philadelphia Eagles

Clemson football only had two players selected in the 2022 NFL Draft, but immediately post-draft Goodrich signed a free agent contract.

Mario Goodrich III – Cornerback, 2017-21

Signed by: Philadelphia Eagles

Quick take: Goodrich’s 2021 campaign appeared to put him on the map. Pre-draft projections predicted he could go anywhere from the 3rd round to the 7th round. NFL executives can be hard to gauge sometimes, and MG3 unfortunately was not selected.

Sometimes, going undrafted can be to your advantage. Goodrich signed quickly with the Philadelphia Eagles, which means he was probably in contact with him long before the end of the draft. NBC Sports ranked cornerback as the Eagles top need in this draft, but they didn’t select one at all. After Darius Slay and Avonte Maddox, they have a lot of names you have never heard of competing for CB2. Goodrich is far from the most likely person to end up as a starter for Philadelphia, but it is clear that there will be a battle among four or five players for that second corner spot. Goodrich and his agent have put him in as good a spot as he can be in.

Clemson highlights:

• 84 tackles
• 0.5 tackles for loss
• 15 pass breakups
• 5 interceptions
• 1 forced fumble
• 1 fumble recovery

Draft Projections:

• ESPN Jordan Reid: 4th Round
• CBS Ryan Wilson: 4th Round
• CBS Josh Edwards: 5th Round
• Sporting News: 4th Round
• Walterfootball.com: 3rd Round
• Drafttek: 7th Round

Dabo’s take:

"Really proud of Mario [Goodrich]. I was talking to the team about Mario a week or so go about this young man, because he didn’t get off to a good start. Like a lot of 18-year-olds, a little immature, not quite as focused, a little distracted, in my office a couple times when he didn’t need to be in my office. Got my foot in his rear a few times and, you know — but you don’t know what you don’t know.And now, here he is. First Team All-Conference. Had his best semester academically in his whole career, 3.46 GPA in the fall. He was voted team captain by his team. Going to the Senior Bowl. That’s what is great about coaching, is seeing transformation, seeing young men buy in."