Every rookie in the NFL has encountered adversity at some point in their football careers. But Matt LaFleur and the Green Bay Packers just signed an undrafted rookie who has gone through more than average.
A lot more than average.
CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported Monday night the Packers signed former Vanderbilt cornerback Marlon Jones. Two years ago, Jones went through cancer treatment for stage-3 Hodgkin lymphoma.
“Was a multi-time all-conference selection at Eastern Washington before Vanderbilt,” wrote Zenitz on X. “Overcame cancer that caused him to miss the 2024 season. Now, lands an NFL opportunity.”
Was a multi-time all-conference selection at Eastern Washington before Vanderbilt. Overcame cancer that caused him to miss the 2024 season. Now, lands an NFL opportunity.
Jones played the first five seasons of his college career at Eastern Washington. After missing all of 2024, he returned to finish his career at Vanderbilt last fall.
During 2025, he had nine total tackles in nine games. Jones started one of those contests.
Matt LaFleur’s club added Jones to the roster about a week before the team begins its offseason workouts. Green Bay is scheduled to start those workouts on May 26.
Packers Sign CB Marlon Jones: Report
Jones will be one of the top feel-good stories of Green Bay’s offseason workouts. The cornerback went through weeks of chemotherapy sessions that lasted more than four hours each to fulfill his football dreams.
After missing all of 2024, Jones returned to the Vanderbilt team in January 2025. He earned a spot back on the field last fall.
“Of course, it crushed me. I was sad. I was scared. But at no point did I think I was going to lose my life,” Jones told The Athletic last August. “That’s a credit to my faith, I just believed and trusted in God’s plan. I knew he didn’t cause me to have this, but he was going to use it for good.
“The only thing I was really worried about was football.”
Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea reassured the young cornerback that he could play again for the Commodores.
“I know the winter and spring were hard for him,” Lea told The Athletic’s Joe Rexrode before last season. “But whatever his limitations are, this guy, he works around them. He works through them. He spends so much time meeting extra, meeting with coaches, with other players, asking questions, focusing on technique. He’s obsessed with it. That has put him in position quickly to be a factor for us.”
Jones missed multiple games because of a hamstring injury last season. But he was fully healthy and made his return from cancer treatment in the team’s 2025 season opener.
Matt LaFleur’s CB Depth for Offseason Workouts
Cornerback has been a remaining question mark for the Packers this offseason. A lot of pundits have linked the team to possible free agent options, including former Green Bay defensive back Rasul Douglas.
Signing Jones doesn’t mean the Packers won’t add a veteran cornerback before the regular season. But the team did address cornerback in some capacity with Jones.
Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine are projected to start at cornerback for Green Bay. This offseason, the Packers also added cornerbacks Benjamin St-Juste, Brandon Cisse and Domani Jackson to the roster.
Jones will likely compete for playing time behind those cornerbacks. The Packers also have
Packers Sign Rookie CB Who Overcame Cancer: Report