A bold quote, a dominant college career, and now a historic NFL paycheck. It looks like former Georgia star Jordan Davis is not stopping anytime soon. The defensive tackle once called Kirby Smart the “worst,” yet he helped the Bulldogs win their first playoff since 1980. Now, he is grabbing attention at a pro level too.

Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jordan Davis signed a three-year contract extension worth $78 million. The deal offers him a guaranteed amount of $65 million, which makes Davis the highest-paid nose tackle in NFL history. This is a defining moment for Georgia, too, as its former player is making major advancements in his pro career.

This extension comes in after Jordan Davis’s extraordinary performance last season. He set a career-high record with nine tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks, showing his impact as both a run stopper and pass rusher. Since coming into the team, Davis’s size (6’6″, 336 pounds) and strength have helped him to control the interior of the offensive line, giving a hard time to other teams’ defenses.

Davis’s career at Georgia put him on track to reach these new heights. He recorded a season-high five stops against Auburn and recorded three tackles and a quarterback sack in 2021, and ultimately won the National Championship. Davis is also notably known for an offensive play he made in that season against Charleston. He recorded a season-high five stops against Auburn and recorded three tackles and a quarterback sack. Aside from being a Natty winner, Jordan Davis also won the prestigious Chuck Bedarnik Award. And yet, he had some extremely tough words for Kirby Smart.

In 2024, during OTAs with the Dolphins, Davis was in for a rigorous time under head coach Vic Fangio. He didn’t have a problem with it, but he saw a similarity between his and Smart’s hard-nosed attitude in coaching.

“I’m sure you heard that all the time; he’s old school, so he doesn’t give a damn,” Davis said of Fangio. “Some people like it for better or for worse. I played with all types of coaches from high school and college. I mean, [Georgia coach] Kirby Smart is the worst of the worst, so not the worst of the worst, but he’s old school. [There’s] a job to do. You do your job, and if you don’t do it, it’s a miss.”

However, Davis remains incredibly thankful to Smart, crediting him for his career.

Kirby Smart gave the NFL one of its best nose tackles

Kirby Smart took a leap of faith in Jordan Davis, who was recruited as a three-star player. The DT created an impact from the get-go and made it to the All-SEC Freshman team. Had Smart not had the confidence in Davis, he wouldn’t have had the chance to show the community what he could truly do.

“They run that program like it’s the NFL in a lot of ways,” Davis wrote of the culture at Georgia for The Players’ Tribune. “I’m not even kidding. It’s the gauntlet of fire. But they also didn’t care that I was a late bloomer one bit. So for as much as they were challenging me, they didn’t just throw me out there and let me fail. They always took their time and taught me.”

Davis went on to be a first-round pick in the 2022 draft and eventually win the Super Bowl in 2024. He was actually meant to play on a rotational basis in 2025, but ended up having a career year instead. Kirby Smart being the ‘worst’ paid off for Davis, who will always cherish his time at Georgia.

“If I could do it all over again, it would be so amazing,” he said. “I wouldn’t be here without (Kirby Smart); he’s done a lot for us, he’s still doing a lot for us, and we’re grateful for him.”