Countdown to Kickoff: Jayden Price is the Saints Player of Day 38
The New Orleans Saints are down to a 38-day wait until their regular season opener against the Arizona Cardinals. Wearing No. 38 for the Saints in training camp is cornerback Jayden Price, one of the team's newcomers. If he makes the team and keeps his current number, Price will become the 17th player to wear No. 38 for the franchise. Our Saints Player of the Day, here's a closer look at Price's background.
At Mulvane High School in Kansas, Price was a quarterback who set school records for career rushing yardage and touchdowns. He'd accept an offer to North Dakota State from there, where he'd star for five years after a redshirt. Over his career with the Bison, Price had 3 interceptions with 17 passes broken up and 3 fumble recoveries. He was also an accomplished punt returner, averaging 14.4 yards per return and scoring 5 touchdowns. Undrafted in 2024, Price would sign with the Atlanta Falcons. He'd be released before the start of the regular season and had a short stint with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL before joining up with the Arlington Renegades of the United Football League.
Price was one of the standouts for the Renegades, who were one of the top teams in the UFL. He led the UFL with 13 passes broken up in 10 games. While he didn't record an interception, Price did have a half sack among his 27 total tackles. He was also among the UFL leaders in kickoff and punt return yardage. Jayden Price is now among the contenders to fill out the Saints depth chart at cornerback. He'll have a shot, as New Orleans attempts to fill the departures of Marshon Lattimore, Paulson Adebo, and Shemar Jean-Charles.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
6 hours ago
- USA Today
Saints have unique role in mind for two-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman LeCharles Bentley
'I enjoy being able to serve the game and also be able to do so at a much higher level' Now this is cool. On Monday, the New Orleans Saints announced that former two-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman LeCharles Bentley will be returning to the team not as a coach or player, but as a "personnel and performance consultant." Drafted by the Saints in the second round out of Ohio State back in 2002, Bentley is the only offensive lineman in team history to be chosen for the Pro Bowl at two different positions, first as a right guard (in 2003) and later at center (2005). Unfortunately, a knee injury cut short what looked to be a star-studded career, but Bentley has gone on to become a successful personal trainer for some of the league's best offensive linemen. He also works with the league office in New York as an advisor on player performance and development. The new role Saints general manager Mickey Loomis has outlined for him sounds unique. "I think the biggest thing Mickey is asking me to do is just kind of view the landscape of what's happening in the building, where I can add value in the evaluation process and development of players," Bentley told team reporter John DeShazier. "I've spent a lot of time watching film, so I've kind of hit multiple areas. I've spent time in the weight room, I've spent time on the field, I've spent time upstairs being able to assess and evaluate players and I also sit in meetings. "I'm touching multiple places and for me, I really enjoy that because it's a challenge. But it also aligns with my personal skill sets. I don't want to get into coaching, or have aspirations of being a coach. But I enjoy being able to serve the game and also be able to do so at a much higher level." Other former players are still working in the organization as position coaches, like future Pro Football Hall of Fame right guard Jahri Evans. Others work in the front office and scouting department like longtime Saints tight end Josh Hill. After spending ten years with the Saints as a player, Fred McAfee has worked in player development for 17 years, and currently holds the title of vice president of player engagement. Bentley stressed that his ability to communicate with players is different than with coaches, as "it's peer-to-peer engagement" given his resume. And for Bentley, the opportunity to work with Loomis again, as well as the general manager who drafted him in Randy Mueller, is a surreal experience: "To be under their tutelage in another chapter of life is a bit surreal. I really appreciate this time because it's a different season of my life, and I'm enjoying it. So to be able to kind of kick off that next chapter back at home – where else would be a better place to do so?"
Miami Herald
14 hours ago
- Miami Herald
‘He flies around.' Dolphins LB Willie Gay Jr. is training camp's biggest star
It started on a rainy day in Kansas City, Missouri. The then-second year Willie Gay Jr. noticed the low energy of his Chiefs teammates and wanted to provide a bit of spark. So as the team walked outside, he let out a very primal, guttural scream. 'The next thing I know, people just started buzzing about it,' the Miami Dolphins linebacker said Sunday. 'But I never did it for people; I do it to get my blood flowing a little bit. But then everywhere I go now, it's become big. It helps me get going a little bit too.' Now, more than three years later, Gay's shriek has not only become a fan favorite at training camp but evident of what he brought to the team. 'It's a pillar of who he is as a person as we really get to know him,' coach Mike McDaniel said Sunday. 'So what does that mean? Any time there's a tip or an overthrow, he's a potential takeaway guy. He is around the ball and he is challenging both the people in his position group and the offense. I think he's a guy that has shown up every day and I think that's who he is and we're happy to have him on the team.' Through 10 practices, Gay has not only emerged as one of the standouts of training camp but arguably the most consistent player. His body of work can be summed up in just two words: energized playmaker. Whether a sack, pass breakup, interception or tackle for loss, Gay gets his hands on the ball — and his teammates juiced in the process. 'Blitz the edge, blitz the middle, cover man to man or play all kind of zone coverages — I feel like I'm in a great role being here,' Gay said in late July. 'The defense is perfect for guys like myself. That's why I feel like our room is so good and well-rounded because we all are skilled in that aspect. I feel like we're all going to benefit from it.' Gay's high-level play is especially surprising considering his 2024 season. After four years with the Chiefs, the two-time Super Bowl champion signed a one-year deal with the New Orleans Saints. His numbers immediately plummeted. Not only was Gay no longer the consistent starter that he was in Kansas City, he experienced career lows across various tackling categories. The lack of snaps eventually started to affect him mentally. 'Probably Week 11, I kind of clocked out because I was like, 'Bro, I'm playing 10 snaps a game,'' Gay recalled July 28. 'I was just like forget it — it was just negative, honestly. I'll give you that. Me and God, we talked about it like always. I learned that to honor him and this game the way I give back is to be grateful in what I do have. And then I feel like he'll bless me with more after that, but first he wants to see me be grateful in the role that I am in. That's kind of all it was. Just trying to be the guy when it wasn't my time yet.' That conversation appears to have helped recenter Gay. In late March, he signed a one-year deal with the Dolphins joining a crowded inside linebacker room that presumably already has its two starters in Tyrel Dodson and Jordyn Brooks. That, however, hasn't deterred the 27-year-old who has used his versatility — Gay can line up at inside or outside linebacker — to make a case for more playing time in 2025. 'Whatever they want me to do,' Gay responded when asked what position is his best. 'Inside, I can go get the ball from that angle. We're working on some things outside where I'm blitzing off the edge getting to the quarterback, so whatever, honestly. Any position I'm put in, I'm going to try to make plays.' That sort of 'do-it-all' attitude has certainly found himself a fan in McDaniel who called Gay ' one of my favorite personality veteran additions' during his tenure in South Florida. It has also made him a locker room favorite. 'He brings himself, but he also brings energy from out of other people,' McDaniel said July 29. 'Those are the types of people in the locker room that can be compass setters and I've been incredibly happy with having him here and he makes himself present and his teammates are aware of him every practice even when he's not making plays, but his speed to the ball is real and it's infectious in helping us capture the vision that we have of how we play football.' 'He's all over the place,' edge rusher Bradley Chubb said July 29. 'He flies around. He's a Super Bowl champ, so I always tell him, 'We need that Super Bowl DNA. Whatever bits and crumbs you've got for us, we need it,' and he shows it each and every day. It's great to have him on our team, for sure.' That, more than anything, might be Gay's biggest addition to this team. He's a champion. And not just a one-time champion either — he was a starting linebacker on the Chiefs team that won back-to-back Super Bowls in 2022 and 2023. As Chubb said, the Dolphins certainly need that. 'Nobody is bigger than the team, there's no superstars,' Gay said when asked about the traits of a championship team after signing in late March. 'Obviously I had Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones and the other guys, but even those guys, they never missed days of practice. If we wore black socks, they wore black socks. Nobody is trying to stand out amongst the crowd. Things like that I noticed was different when I went to New Orleans, once against not to bash New Orleans – it's a great city, great team and all. But just something that I noticed was different and when it comes down to it, you realize that the details like that matters come the end of the year.'
USA Today
17 hours ago
- USA Today
34 days till the Arizona Cardinals' 2025 season opener: Who has worn No. 34?
With 34 days till the Cardinals open the season against the Saints, we look at the players who have worn No. 34. We are counting down to the start of the 2025 regular season for the Arizona Cardinals, and that is less than five weeks away. They will open the season on the road against the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 7. That is 34 days away. As we count down the remaining days of the offseason, let's look at who has worn that number uniform over the years for the Cardinals. Who has worn No. 34? Cardinals players to wear No. 34 Safety Jalen Thompson has quietly been wearing No. 34 since he came into the league in 2019. We will see how much longer he stays on the team. It is the final year of his contract. Koman was a two-time Pro Bowl linebacker in the 60s. He and Thompson have been the best players with that number, as well as Harder a gazillion years ago. Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
