Nick McCloud (born July 9, 1998) is an American professional football cornerback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He has previously played for the Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants, and San Francisco 49ers. He played college football for the NC State Wolfpack and Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
College career He played college football at North Carolina State University and the University of Notre Dame.
While playing for Fighting Irish in the 2021 Rose Bowl, McCloud went viral after getting hurdled by Alabama runningback Najee Harris.
Professional career
Buffalo Bills McCloud signed with the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2021. He was waived by Buffalo during final roster cuts on August 31.
Cincinnati Bengals McCloud was claimed off waivers by the Cincinnati Bengals on September 1, 2021. He was waived by the Bengals on November 4.
Buffalo Bills (second stint) On November 8, 2021, McCloud was signed to the Buffalo Bills' practice squad. After the Bills were eliminated in the Divisional Round of the 2021 playoffs, he signed a reserve/future contract with the team on January 24, 2022. McCloud was waived by the Bills on August 30.
New York Giants On August 31, 2022, McCloud was claimed off waivers by the New York Giants.
In a 2023 Week 11 game against the Washington Commanders, McCloud recorded an interception, a forced fumble, and a pass deflection. McCloud ended the 2023 season with 28 tackles, three forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, an interception, and two pass deflections.
On November 5, 2024, McCloud was waived by the Giants. This came after a long disagreement with the front office that wanted him to take a midseason pay cut on the one-year, $3 million contract he had signed in March. After McCloud refused, Giants general manager Joe Schoen made a threat toward his agents and said: "Don't pay October's rent, all right? As soon as I can replace him, I'm going to replace him. I'm not fucking around".
San Francisco 49ers On November 11, 2024, McCloud was signed to the San Francisco 49ers' practice squad. On November 30, McCloud was promoted to the active roster.
Chicago Bears On March 24, 2025, McCloud signed a one-year contract with the Chicago Bears.
He entered the regular season as the backup left cornerback behind Tyrique Stevenson. Injuries among the starters led to increased action for McCloud on defense that included starting four games. McCloud was targeted 32 times, allowing 26 catches for 322 yards and five touchdowns while breaking up two passes. Although initially signed since he could provide special teams support, he did not play for the unit in 2025.
Miami Dolphins McCloud was signed by the Miami Dolphins on August 10, 2026. On August 22, he was released by the Dolphins.
Chicago Bears (second stint) On September 22, 2026, McCloud was signed to the Bears practice squad.
Career statistics NFL Legend Led the league Bold Career high
Regular season Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Total Solo Ast Sck TFL Sfty PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2021 CIN 2 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2022 NYG 14 8 43 35 8 1.5 2 0 7 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2023 NYG 17 3 28 20 8 0.0 0 0 2 1 0 0.0 0 0 3 1 3 1 0 2024 NYG 7 5 14 10 4 0.0 1 0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 SF 8 0 11 4 7 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2025 CHI 15 4 27 18 9 0.0 0 0 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 63 20 123 87 36 1.5 3 0 12 1 0 0.0 0 0 3 1 3 1 0
Postseason Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Total Solo Ast Sck TFL Sfty PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2022 NYG 2 0 3 2 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2025 CHI 1 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 3 1 3 2 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
College Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Total Solo Ast Sack PD Int Yds TD FF FR TD 2016 NC State 11 1 15 13 2 0.0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2017 NC State 13 7 34 22 12 0.0 7 1 53 0 0 0 0 2018 NC State 11 11 51 34 17 0.0 8 2 23 0 0 1 0 2019 NC State 2 2 7 3 4 0.0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2020 Notre Dame 12 11 33 22 11 0.0 8 1 0 0 0 2 0Career 49 32 140 94 46 0.0 28 4 76 0 0 3 0
References
External links NC State Wolfpack bio Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio