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How often does a former Olympic track star fall from the trees? The Eagles might be wise to hit the forest floor first. Headfirst.
The San Francisco 49ers want to move on from wide receiver Marquise Goodwin after two straight injury-plagued seasons. Kyle Shanahan told reporters at the NFL Combine that he’s willing to trade the 29-year-old speedster but the 49ers will not cut him.
Goodwin is too valuable and “can play in this league,” per Shanahan. If San Francisco can find a trading partner, then they’ll find a way to integrate him back into their offense. At least that’s what he is saying publicly.
“Marquise is a guy who can play in this league,” Shanahan told Matt Barrows of The Athletic. “If he’s on this team, he’s going to be competing with that group and, if not, I feel pretty confident another team would want him.”
The Eagles should be one of those teams. Yes, Philadelphia needs to get younger at the skill positions but Goodwin has shown he can put up big numbers. He was targeted 105 times in 2017 while hauling in 56 balls for 962 yards. He has 140 receptions for 2,323 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns in seven seasons.
Oh, and he’s fast. Incredibly fast. His 4.27 seconds in the 40-yard dash is the sixth-fastest time ever recorded at the NFL Combine. Keep in mind, DeSean Jackson’s fastest recorded time was 4.35 seconds. That would be a nightmarish duo for opposing defensive backs to cover.
Goodwin’s Asking Price & Contract Situation
Kyle Shanahan didn’t sound like a man ready to give away the farm, so the asking price for Marquise Goodwin may be high. Remember, the receiver was a third-round pick of the Buffalo Bills in 2013.
However, Goodwin has dealt with a series of recent injuries — concussion, chronic knee issues, hamstring, foot, calf. He’s not a lock to bounce back from them. The good news is that Goodwin hasn’t played a lot of football, with only 40 career starts in seven seasons.
What would San Francisco want in return? No one knows for sure. It would definitely be worth an exploratory phone call, especially if GM Howie Roseman could pry him loose for a mid-round pick.
There is another problem, though. Goodwin’s two-year contract isn’t the best deal to inherit. He’s scheduled to make $3.95 million in base salary and count $4.906 million against the cap in 2020, per Pro Football Talk. And his base salary goes up to $5.3 million in 2021.
Is He Still Dreaming about Olympic Gold?
Marquise Goodwin has already competed for Olympic gold once, at the 2012 London Games. He finished 10th in the long jump and out of the running for medals but promised to give it another go in the 2020 Games in Tokyo.
“Yes, 100 percent interest,” Goodwin told NBC Sports last April. “But we’re talking about football right now. 2020 next year.”
Goodwin was a decorated track and field athlete in high school where he set the national high school record in the long jump. He carried that success into the University of Texas and was a two-time NCAA champion in the long jump and four-time All-American in track and field.
His career-best jump of 8.33 meters qualified for him the 2012 Olympic Games in London but he failed to medal, then won a silver medal at the 2015 Pan-Am Games after leaping 8.27 meters. However, Goodwin failed to make the cut for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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