Countdown to Kickoff: Clyde Edwards-Helaire is the Saints Player of Day 23

USA Today

2 days ago

Edwards-Helaire is looking to revive his once-promising career
In 23 days, the New Orleans Saints will kick off their 2025 regular season when they host the Arizona Cardinals. Running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire wears No. 23 for New Orleans currently, looking for his second straight year with the squad. A local Louisiana product, Edwards-Helaire is our Saints Player of the Day. Now trying to revive his once-promising career with his hometown team, here's a closer look at Edwards-Helaire's background.
A four-star recruit at Catholic High School in Baton Rouge where he starred for four years, Louisiana State University kept Edwards-Helaire close to home. He'd see light action as a true freshman before earning a bigger role in 2018 with 658 rushing yards. During the Tigers historic national championship season of 2019, Edwards-Helaire led the squad with 1,414 yards rushing and topped the SEC with 16 rushing scores. He also added an impressive 55 receptions for 453 yards that year while bringing in 1st Team All-SEC honors.
Edwards-Helaire declared for the NFL draft in 2020, where the Kansas City Chiefs made him the first running back selected with the final choice of the first round. As a rookie, Edwards-Helaire led the Chiefs with 803 rushing yards. He'd add 36 catches for 297 yards for a Kansas City team that advanced to Super Bowl LV. A knee injury caused Edwards-Helaire to miss seven outings in 2021, though his 517 yards on the ground were still second on the team. In 2022, he dealt with more injuries that limited him to 10 contests. Kansas City went on to win Super Bowl LVII that season, but with Edwards-Helaire managing just 453 total yards and playing a secondary role in the backfield to Isaiah Pacheco. He remained behind Pacheco in 2023, picking up just 411 scrimmage yards in 15 games as the Chiefs won back-to-back Super Bowl titles.
Personal off-field issues caused Edwards-Helaire to start the 2024 campaign on the non-football injury list (NFI). He was activated by the Chiefs in October, but released in December without appearing in a game. New Orleans quickly signed Edwards-Helaire, playing him in the final two games of the season. In those contests, he rushed for 46 yards and added 24 more with 3 catches. He enters the 2025 season with 1,891 career rushing yards, with an average of 4.2 per carry, along with 92 receptions for 789 yards and 19 total touchdowns.
At only 26, Clyde Edwards-Helaire is now trying to revive his career after a very promising start. The Saints are hoping that he'll provide a legitimate backfield complement to Alvin Kamara, something their offense has lacked for some time. Edwards-Helaire is a capable receiver out of the backfield and excellent on blitz pickup assignments, but must show that he can consistently be productive as a runner between the tackles. If he can, he might hold off competition from Cam Akers, Devin Neal, and Marcus Yarns to push Kendre Miller as the team's number two back.