Marquise Goodwin knelt and prayed privately before stepping off the practice field in Berea on the final day of May, and oh, does he have a story to tell.
The Browns signed Goodwin, 32, as a free agent in mid-April because the offense lacked a wide receiver that could streak past defenders to catch deep passes from Deshaun Watson. His speed was on full display during a padless OTA session May 31.
Goodwin set the national high school record for the long jump in 2009 when he leaped 26 feet, 10 inches as part of the Rowlett (Texas) team while participating in the USA Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. The record still belongs to him. Goodwin started running when he was seven years old and hasn’t stopped.
Deshaun Watson goes deep to Marquise Goodwin during spring practice Wednesday in Berea. #Browns pic.twitter.com/4USvwuUEU7
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) May 31, 2023
“I have a sister (Deja) who has never walked a day in her life,” Goodwin said after practice. “She was born with cerebral palsy. I am 10 months older than she is and that’s my motivation. I’d be doing her a disservice if I were to not go and maximize my sport ability.
“If I’m not out-running and if I’m not out-jumping, if I’m not out catching footballs and I’m just sitting around being lazy or complaining, then I’m doing her a disservice.”
Goodwin said he grew up in an impoverished neighborhood in Texas. He began racing people for money — some were adults — when he was seven years old. He began playing organized sports when he was nine. He told of a life-changing experience when he was in middle school.
Marquise Goodwin says #Browns gifted quarterback Deshaun Watson has “God’s arm.” He attributes his own speed to aging “like fine wine.” pic.twitter.com/4Bh9rjB82h
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) May 31, 2023
“I woke up in the middle of the night, probably 3:30, 4 in the morning and I just hear somebody in the room and I go around the corner,” Goodwin said, “I’m listening and my sister’s like, ‘God, just please, please.’ And I just hear her saying, ‘Please, please.’ I’m like, ‘What?’ She’s like, ‘Please, just let me feel what it feels like to walk. I just want my feet to touch the ground.’
“You hear that, you ain’t going to be motivated? Come on.
“When I got drafted by the Bills, my third year, she came and lived with me. So did my brother (Rickey). My brother helped take care of her and one day I picked her up and I was showing her a picture on my phone. I’m like, ‘Who is this?’ She was like, ‘That’s mama.’ And I’m like, ‘No, who is this?’
“It was a picture of her. She didn’t know. And I’m like, ‘How do you not know who this is?’ And she’s like, ‘I don’t know.’ So she was like, ‘I don’t see myself.’ She doesn’t see herself in the mirror. She can’t walk. I bought a big mirror, put it up and I picked her up and I’m just weeping. I’m bawling because my sister is, at the time, like 25 and had never seen herself in the mirror.”
Players are not in pads during OTAs and quarterbacks are not throwing in the face of a pass rush. Myles Garrett doesn’t even bother showing up to these volunteer sessions. Still, Godwin opened eyes early in the May 31 session when he ran past the secondary and hauled in a pass from Watson that covered 50 or 60 yards. Toward the end of practice he made a fingertip catch near the back of the end zone. An official on the spot might have called it incomplete because it was debatable whether he got both feet down in the end zone with a firm grasp of the ball. But when asked about the play during his interview, Goodwin smiled and raised his arms to indicate touchdown.
“I think about Marquise Goodwin finally getting around Deshaun and running some routes — there are some guys that you really have to rhythm up,” head coach Kevin Stefaski said. “You have to understand how those guys run their routes. Quarterbacks have to understand how they come in and out of breaks. So all of the work that we’re doing, I believe it all adds up.”
Goodwin, 5-foot-9, 180 pounds, played four seasons with the Bills, three with the 49ers, one with the Bears and one with the Seahawks. He has 187 career catches for 3,023 yards and 18 touchdowns.
