With a rare blend of power, agility, explosion and speed for a 6-foot-5, 270-pound edge defender, there was little doubt throughout the pre-draft process that Myles Murphy’s talent was first-round worthy.
The question for the former Clemson standout heading into Thursday was just how soon was Murphy going to hear his name called?
The Cincinnati Bengals provided the answer.
The Bengals took Murphy with the 28th overall pick, making him the 37th first-round selection in program history. Murphy, the third defensive end selected in this year’s draft, is the 16th first-rounder produced by Clemson in the Dabo Swinney era (since 2009). His selection makes it nine out of the last 11 years in which Clemson has had at least one player taken in the first round.
A former blue-chip recruit, Murphy played just three seasons at Clemson after signing with the Tigers in December 2019. Durability wasn’t an issue with Murphy, who played in all but one of the Tigers’ 39 games since arriving on campus. He finished his college career with 119 tackles and led Clemson in sacks in each of the last two seasons.
But Murphy never had a double-digit sack season during his time with the Tigers, leaving some question as to why the production didn’t necessarily match the talent.
Some draft analysts thought a slide into the latter part of the first round was likely. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah, who called Murphy a “tricky” prospect leading up to the draft, had Murphy coming off the board to the New Orleans Saints with the third-to-last pick of the first round in his final mock. ESPN’s Todd McShay had the same projection while his network colleague, Mel Kiper Jr., pegged Murphy to be taken nine picks earlier by the Seattle Seahawks.
Murphy’s physical traits, though, are undeniable.
He dealt with a hamstring injury that kept him from working out at the NFL scouting combine in February and Clemson’s pro day in March. But once he was back at full strength earlier this month, Murphy put his speed and athleticism on display for league personnel during a private workout on Clemson’s campus. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.52 seconds, a time that would’ve ranked seventh among all edge defenders that participated in the combine.
Texas Tech’s Tyree Wilson (seventh overall to the Las Vegas Raiders) and Iowa’s Lukas Van Ness (13th to the Green Bay Packers) were the first two ends to come off the board, but the Bengals snatched up Murphy with their first pick of the night, making him Clemson’s first defensive first-rounder since 2020.
He’ll join another former Clemson player, D.J. Reader, on the Bengals’ defensive line.
Dear Old Clemson has added the Tiger Sack Pack to our online store. Save by getting the Two Pack of signed cards from two of the nation’s top defensive ends, Myles Murphy and Xavier Thomas.
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