Seahawks Jadarian Price is right in the zone
Published 11:12 am Tuesday, May 5, 2026
RENTON, Wash. — For the first time since he was drafted 32nd, Jadarian Price took the field and simulated a little bit of what he’ll be able to provide for the Seattle Seahawks offense.
During two minicamp practices, Price ran routes, caught passes, participated in drills and took handoffs in a T-shirt and shorts along with more than 60 other rookies and second-year players at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
It will be a few months before Price can showcase his skills in a game. His first opportunity will likely come in Seattle’s preseason opener. In the meantime, those interested in getting a good feel for what his game looks like should watch his performances versus USC over the last couple of years. Those are the games Price cited Thursday as the best illustrations of his skill set.
“I showed my versatility,” Price said at his introductory news conference. “What I can do in the run game, pass game and returning ability.”
Price only caught two passes for 8 yards in those two games, but he was dynamic as a running back and a kick returner. In Notre Dame’s 2024 win over the Trojans, Price had 12 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown. Last year in a victory over USC, Price had 13 carries for 87 yards, a 16-yard rushing touchdown and a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown.
“The USC game was ridiculous,” general manager John Schneider said on draft night, referring to the 2025 game.
Price’s “ridiculous” game against the Trojans featured a skill that will be useful in a Seahawks offense that believes in deploying multiple “starting” running backs. Due to sharing a backfield with Heisman Trophy finalist Jeremiyah Love, Price didn’t get his first carry until the final minute of the first quarter.
Price rushed for 32 yards.
On that play (the first video in the above clip), Notre Dame pulled its tight end and left guard, and Price followed up the middle and burst through a couple of outstretched arms on his way to the second level. On the next play, Price went up the middle again, met two defenders at the second level, dropped his pads and plowed forward for an 8-yard gain. Love picked up a first down on the next snap, then Price finished the drive with a touchdown run in which he ran through the arm of the nose tackle, cut laterally and sped away from the safety to reach the end zone.
On draft night, Schneider said Price’s superpower was his “instant acceleration.” Schneider is correct. Price can also bring instant offense and produce big plays without needing time to get warmed up. His former position coach Ja’Juan Seider attributes that to Price being a student of the game who is interested in learning all that goes into bringing a call to life, not just his role in the play. Even when Price was on the sideline, Seider said, “He’s playing the game on the side.”
“He wants to know what the play is, what the coverage is, so he can anticipate,” Seider said in a KJR-FM radio interview. “When he’s not in the game, he’s still into it. That’s what makes him special.”
Brian Fleury will be Mike Macdonald’s third offensive coordinator in as many years. It’s unclear if Fleury will approach the running back rotation the same way as his predecessor Klint Kubiak, but if he does, Price will go from sharing a backfield in South Bend to sharing one in Seattle. Price’s potential running mates: George Holani, Emanuel Wilson, Kenny McIntosh, Jacardia Wright and Zach Charbonnet when he returns from having his ACL surgically repaired in February.
Even if he’s technically RB1, Price would need to be explosive and efficient with his touches to maximize his situation in Seattle, which leans heavily on an outside zone blocking scheme. In college, Price excelled in a variety of schemes. Seider said they didn’t run as much outside zone as he would have liked, but he expects Price to thrive in a scheme that will accentuate his vision and acceleration.
“That’s his love language, to put him in outside zone, to stretch, puncture,” Seider said. He added that Price may be the fastest running back he’s had in terms of putting his foot in the ground, bouncing toward the numbers, getting vertical and attacking safeties. “He’s as good as Jeremiyah is. He’s equally good in that department. (People) just didn’t talk about him as much because he played with the No. 3 pick in the draft. But he has those same qualities, those same traits.”
An example of those traits came on one of Price’s touchdowns against Texas A&M. He was able to bounce the run outside, thanks to the edge set by his tight end, and from there Price was one-on-one with safety Dalton Brooks in the alley. Price not only punished Brooks for taking a poor angle, but he did it without any wasted movement, allowing him to quickly get to the numbers, cut up the field and reach the end zone before the other defenders in pursuit arrived. The blocking scheme wasn’t the same as Price’s love language, but the skills showcased are the type that should translate to the next level.
A starting-caliber talent with work to do in pass-catching and ball security.
“Putting him in outside zone is going to be scary,” Seider said. “That’s a great (match) for him.”
The Seahawks are counting on it.
Here are other notes from Seahawks rookie camp:
Scheme carryover
Beau Stephens lined up at right guard in both practices. Stephens, drafted 148th in the fifth round, said it’s “too early to tell” whether that’ll be his spot, but Macdonald confirmed after practice Saturday that he will indeed begin his NFL career on that side of the offensive line. With Anthony Bradford, a 2023 fourth-round pick, entering the final year of his rookie contract, putting Stephens at right guard makes sense even if he’s not in contention for the starting gig until next season.
“Beau’s on the right side right now, but we’re going to train him at both spots,” Macdonald said.
Stephens gave a shoutout to Iowa offensive coordinator Tim Lester because much of the Seahawks playbook is similar to what he’s used to from college.
“A lot of it’s the same,” Stephens said. “A lot of the same words. There’s definitely some differences; there’s definitely more complexity. But I feel like I’ve gotten a great starting point and it’s very helpful. … I feel like I’m going to have a handle on it.”
Perfect fit
Cornerback Julian Neal, drafted No. 99 in the third round, knew there’d be some playbook carryover from college since his secondary coach, Nick Perry, was on the Seahawks staff as a defensive assistant in 2024. While being recruited to Arkansas ahead of the 2025 season, Neal said part of the sales pitch was the opportunity to learn the same techniques being taught by the Seahawks. When Neal met with Seattle at the scouting combine and discussed techniques, “We just had so much chemistry.”
“I just felt the chemistry, so I’m like, ‘This is perfect,’” Neal said.
Neal cited Seattle’s history with cornerbacks and his relationship and experience with Perry as reasons his talents will be showcased as a Seahawk.
“I flourished under (Perry’s) coaching, so I’m already knowing once I get here, it’s probably going to go to the next level,” Neal said.
Neal said he initially had a deal with an unnamed company to receive a hat representing each of the 32 teams before the NFL Draft. Two days before the draft, his assistant texted him that those hats weren’t going to make it in time. On Day 2 of the draft, Neal thought back to all his interviews during the pre-draft process and the fact that his aunt has been a Seahawks fan for 12 years. He instructed her to buy him a Seahawks hat. Neal told that story in a video posted shortly after he was selected. After practice Friday, he went through it again and said that’s why he was so excited to get a phone call from the Seahawks.
“That’s why I was so juiced,” Neal said. “It was just anticipation. It really came true. That was a pure reaction.”
LOB effect
Seattle has successfully branded a new championship-winning defense, but figures from the Legion of Boom era will always mean something to football players of a certain age. Former Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman — who still lives in the area and serves as studio analyst for Amazon’s “Thursday Night Football” — attended practice Friday and left an impression on Seattle’s first-year defensive backs.
“First day of minicamp and Richard Sherman is coming up to me and telling me some stuff?” Neal said. “Mid-practice he was like, ‘Hey (Neal), what you looking at when you’re in press?’ This is mid-rep. Stuff like that gets me pumped for the season.”
Safety Bud Clark was a limited participant in both practices, presumably because he’s one of two draftees yet to sign his four-year rookie contract (Price also hasn’t signed). But Clark patterned his game after former Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor, so he’s very familiar with the Legion of Boom. Clark, drafted 64th in the second round, said he approached Sherman after practice and had to make sure not to be a “fanboy.”
“I shook his hand, and I was like ‘I’m Bud Clark,’ and I just kept kicking,” Clark said, laughing. “I looked up to him since I was a kid. That’s crazy. I was about to ask for a picture and all, but I was like nah, I can’t do it. I’m a Seahawk now.”
Macdonald said it was great to have Sherman at practice.
“Hopefully he’s got a key here — he’s welcome anytime,” Macdonald said. “It was fun to see him out there and get caught up. I know the guys really appreciated it.”
Position switch
Tyrone Broden, a 2025 rookie free-agent signee, has switched positions, moving from receiver to cornerback. Listed at 6-foot-5 with 4.37 speed, Broden is an interesting developmental prospect and may be the tallest player in the league at his new position.
“We love his movement ability, he’s got ball skills and he competes and he’s got a great attitude,” Macdonald said of Broden, who’s sidelined with an injury. “We felt like he could translate to being a heck of a DB one day.”
