hastingstribune
This offseason, Jadarian Price, the Seattle Seahawks' top draft choice, returned to his hometown of Denison, Texas, with a mission to invest his initial professional earnings wisely. The 22-year-old running back, inspired by his mother Jessica Butler's battle with cancer, purchased a new home for his family.
Butler's recovery before Price's college career left a lasting impression on him, teaching him that perseverance can overcome any obstacle. "I truly believe that in order to grow, you have to go through pain and adversity," Price remarked in April, reflecting on his mother's struggle. "Watching my mom go through that, it made me believe there's nothing that could stop me getting to achieve my dreams. She went through the worst. So, what's one more bad day of adversity for me? I can always get through it."
With that milestone achieved, Price now turns his attention to carving out a role in the Seahawks' backfield. During his final season at Notre Dame, he shared carries with Jeremiyah Love, who was drafted third overall by the Arizona Cardinals. Price's college role was limited, primarily seeing action on third downs and rarely catching passes. Over three years with the Fighting Irish, he accumulated just 15 receptions for 162 yards and three touchdowns.
Determined to become a more complete back, Price is focusing on improving his pass blocking and becoming a reliable target for quarterback Sam Darnold. "That's one thing I have worked on since high school," Price said of his receiving skills. "I've continuously gotten better at it throughout college, and that's one thing people questioned (about me) going into the pros. So, I worked on it and continue to work on it and understand the space and catching abilities."
In the Seahawks' running back room, Price has found a mentor in George Holani, who has been impressed with the rookie's early progress during OTAs and training camp. Holani noted that the competition among backs is healthy, with everyone supporting each other. "I think honestly, the competition right now is really positive," Holani said. "A lot of guys cheering each other on and making sure when there's a play made, we all celebrate as a team. We feel like there's no individual success, it's always team success."
Price has shown flashes of brilliance in camp, displaying excellent contact balance, quick feet, and reliable hands. "He has great contact balance, great feet, great hands in the pass game," Holani added. "He's really explosive with his cuts. So, he'd be making like two cuts in one play. And, it's crazy how he can get vertical and find that crease and then make another cut to get open and just get a lot of yards from that."
The defending Super Bowl champions are optimistic that Price can quickly become an integral part of their offense. Head coach Mike Macdonald has already noted the rookie's versatility, saying there isn't much he can't do on the field. Price is eager to excel in first-year offensive coordinator Brian Fleury's system, which shares similarities with the scheme run by Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak. "I'm really starting to finally understand the offense," Price said. "The things that we do, I didn't do too much in college. So now that I am opening my game up a little bit, I'm really excited for the season."
Roster Moves
Before Saturday's practice, the Seahawks made a roster adjustment, signing linebacker Joseph Vaughn to the 90-man squad. To make room, linebacker JaMarkis Weston was waived. Vaughn, a two-time All-Ivy League selection at Yale, spent training camp with the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent before being cut. He appeared in 12 games for UCLA in 2024.
Originally reported by hastingstribune.