Making the Case for Devon Marshall in the NFL Draft Process
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RALEIGH — NC State's list of potential future NFL talent from the 2025 roster isn't as long as it has been in years past, but some members of the Wolfpack showed enough promise throughout the season to be candidates to play at the next level.
One of those players was senior cornerback Devon Marshall, who finished the year as NC State's star defensive back with some of the best performances at the position in the program's history and certainly since Dave Doeren took over 13 years ago. Declaring himself "Marshall Island," the cornerback proved he could be effective at the next level if given the chance.
Could Marshall be on big boards come April?
The short answer to the question posed above is yes. Marshall is listed at 5-foot-11, certainly on the shorter side, as most NFL cornerbacks are closer to 6-foot-1 than under it. However, it's the ball skills and commitment to the craft that separate Marshall from the rest of the bunch and make him unique. The senior finished the 2025 season with a Pro Football Focus defensive grade of 90.1.
Marshall led the Wolfpack with 14 pass breakups and lived up to his self-proclaimed nickname as NC State's island corner. That nickname is the perfect way to describe Marshall's play style, as he loves being left alone at the position against the opposition's best pass catchers. He put together several incredible performances against major wideouts, but one stood out from the rest.
Devon Marshall vs. Duce Robinson and Florida State:
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) November 22, 2025
🐺 2 INTs
🐺 8 pass breakups
🐺 0 TDs allowed
🐺 7.7 passer rating allowed
🐺 14 targets
🐺 4 catches allowed pic.twitter.com/tpDZBZx1NY
Against Florida State and wide receiver Duce Robinson, Marshall played one of the best games by a Wolfpack cornerback ever. He intercepted quarterback Tommy Castellanos twice, broke up eight passes and allowed just four catches on 14 targets. Robinson was completely taken out of the game after he entered the matchup with multiple games of 100-plus receiving yards in a row behind him.
In the Gasparilla Bowl, Memphis quarterback Brendon Lewis rarely targeted Marshall's side of the field. The respect for the veteran cornerback increased over the course of the season after he began as a relative unknown. He was in the mix as a junior, but his development throughout the 2025 season helped him show up on several NFL draft boards for various well-known analysts in December.
According to ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr., Marshall is just outside the top-10 available cornerbacks in the 2026 draft class. Sports Illustrated's Daniel Flick called him one of the most-improved players in terms of draft stock following his performance against Florida State.
Marshall's unbelievable confidence and self-belief, something commonplace amongst the best NFL cornerbacks, make him a potential steal for one of the 32 teams at the next level.
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Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.
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