SEATTLE (AP) — When Jadarian Price went back home to Denison, Texas, this offseason, the Seattle Seahawks’ first-round pick sought to put his first paycheck to good use.
Price is fueled on the football field by his mother, Jessica Butler, who was diagnosed with cancer before he went to college. Butler eventually recovered, and demonstrated to Price that no amount of adversity is insurmountable.
“I truly believe that in order to grow, you have to go through pain and adversity,” Price said in April. “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.”
So, after his first big payday, the 22-year-old Price bought his family a new house.
“That was the biggest goal of mine since I made it to the NFL,” Price said. “I already did that, so checked that off the list.”
Next up for Price is acclimating to life in the league after splitting time in the Fighting Irish’s backfield last season with Jeremiyah Love, who was selected with the No. 3 overall pick by the Arizona Cardinals.
At Notre Dame, Price saw limited action on third downs and seldom caught passes out of the backfield. Across three seasons with the Fighting Irish, Price had 15 catches for 162 yards and three touchdowns.
In addition to seeking to become a better pass blocker, Price hopes to be a reliable receiving option for Sam Darnold.
“That’s one thing I have worked on since high school,” Price said of his pass catching. “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.”
Among the more helpful teammates for getting Price up to speed going back to OTAs has been fellow running back George Holani. Price said Holani sets the standard for a running back room that hopes to adequately replace Kenneth Walker, who after being the Super Bowl MVP left for the Kansas City Chiefs in free agency.
Emanuel Wilson, who signed in free agency after three seasons with the Green Bay Packers, is also on the scene. Zach Charbonnet was placed on the physically unable to perform list before camp, but is expected to return at some point during the 2026 season.
“I think honestly, the competition right now is really positive,” Holani said, “as in 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, though, has impressed Holani with plenty of individual success during the first week of training camp. Whether it’s pass protections, catching passes out of the backfield or run plays, Price has demonstrated to Holani an ability to rise to the challenges that NFL defenses present.
Of course, the 5-foot-11, 203-pound Price has also stood out as a downhill runner who can bounce carries to the outside to make good use of his speed and quickness.
“He has great contact balance, great feet, great hands in the pass game,” Holani said. “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 Price can quickly become a key part in their offense. Early in camp, coach Mike Macdonald said there is a “lot of opportunity” with Price, and that there isn’t much he can't do on the field.
Price hopes to make good use of his skill set in first-year offensive coordinator Brian Fleury’s scheme, one which presents many similarities to that of current 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.”
Before Saturday afternoon’s practice, the Seahawks signed linebacker Joseph Vaughn. Linebacker Ja’Markis Weston was waived to make room for Vaughn on the 90-man roster.
Vaughn signed with Indianapolis as an undrafted free agent and spent training camp with the Colts before being waived prior to the start of the season. He was a two-time All-Ivy League selection during three seasons at Yale before appearing in 12 games for UCLA in 2024.
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Fans vie for an autograph from Seattle Seahawks running back Jadarian Price during the NFL football team's training camp, Sunday, July 26, 2026, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Seattle Seahawks running back Jadarian Price runs the ball during the NFL football team's training camp, Sunday, July 26, 2026, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Seattle Seahawks running back Jadarian Price runs a drill during the NFL football team's training camp, Saturday, July 25, 2026, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
LATROBE, Pa. (AP) — The layup answer was right there for Jaquan Brisker, but the Pittsburgh Steelers safety refused take it.
Asked if the chance to come home enticed the Pittsburgh native to sign a one-year deal with the Steelers in the offseason, Brisker — while standing near dozens of people wearing yellow T-shirts with Brisker's No. 3 on it after practice at Saint Vincent College on Saturday — shook his head.
“To be honest, I did not think about my family,” Brisker said. “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be shady to them, but I didn’t.”
He wasn't laughing. Maybe because, as special as the chance to look up into the stands at Chuck Noll Field and see 150 or so friends and family members sitting together in a roped off section was, it was more of just a happy coincidence than anything.
“I thought about the football aspect of it and, the best fit I had and, really the organization,” he said. “And this was a great fit.”
One that came at a relatively affordable price for the Steelers. Brisker signed for $5.5 million, with around $4.3 million of it guaranteed. It's a price Pittsburgh thinks could be a steal for a versatile, rangy player who had four picks and seven sacks during his four seasons in Chicago.
Yet the Bears opted to let Brisker walk even after a pair of eye-raising performances in the playoffs last season. Brisker had nine tackles in a first-round win over Green Bay and his No. 9 was all over the field against the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round, getting 14 tackles, a sack and two passes defensed while playing all 78 snaps in an overtime loss.
Brisker joins an experienced group that includes Jalen Ramsey — whom defensive coordinator Patrick Graham described as more of a “chess piece” than a pure safety — and Deshon Elliott, who is recovering from knee and hamstring injuries, that cost him the final two-plus months of 2025.
Where and how Brisker fits exactly remains uncertain, though the energy he has brought to the field during the opening days of what has been a relatively subdued start to head coach Mike McCarthy's training camp has been noticeable.
That's just the way Brisker prefers it.
“I’ve been loving this since I was four,” he said. “And being a Pittsburgh guy, all I breathe is football.”
Even if that love until this summer never led Brisker into making the hour-long pilgrimage from the Wilkinsburg neighborhood to Saint Vincent.
Brisker had never set foot on campus until he arrived with the rest of his new teammates earlier this week. The lush setting made an immediate impression.
“Like, I could live here,” he said.
While that won't be necessary, for a day anyway it sure felt as if Brisker owned the place.
He spent 10 minutes after the final non-padded practice of camp posing for pictures, signing T-shirts and hugging it out with an entourage that took over a considerable chunk of the bleachers.
Terry Smith, who coached Brisker at Gateway High School before the two were reunited at Penn State, made an appearance. So did many others who helped Brisker along a football journey that is having a full-circle moment.
How long it lasts will likely depend on what Brisker does with the opportunity provided he can stay healthy. He's been diagnosed with three concussions during his career, which may have played a factor in Chicago's decision not to re-sign him.
Not that Brisker is focused on the past. He has embraced the aggressive nature of Graham's defense, and while the practices during the opening week of camp are supposed to be devoid of contact, Brisker has found himself mixing it up on occasion.
“It’s all about the ball, all about getting turnovers, all about just getting stops and giving back the offense the ball and guys playing with that swagger, that energy," he said.
Brisker has plenty of both, though he's also made it a point to pull some of the players he grew up watching — former Pittsburgh cornerback turned mentor Ike Taylor among them — aside to pick their brain as he makes the transition from watching the Steelers on TV to pulling on the black-and-gold for work every day.
“I try to get as much information (as I can) from Ike all the time,” he said, “and just trying to feel how they had that connection, how they were.”
Brisker is eager to follow in Taylor's footsteps. The fact he'll get the chance to do it surrounded by so many familiar faces is merely a bonus.
And as cool as having his own special section at practice was, don't expect to see the same turnout on Sundays at Acrisure Stadium this fall. Brisker loves his family, but the cost of 150 or so game tickets is a little too pricey.
“They know that,” he said with a laugh. “They know that.”
NOTES: Longtime general manager Kevin Colbert, three-time Super Bowl champion J.T. Thomas and former offensive lineman turned radio analyst Craig Wolfley were selected to the club's Hall of Honor on Saturday. The trio will be formally inducted on Friday, Sept. 25 before a visit from the Cincinnati Bengals that weekend.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
Pittsburgh Steelers safety Jaquan Brisker, right, attempt to punch the ball from the grasp of wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., during the NFL team's camp in Latrobe, Pa., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Pittsburgh Steelers safety Jaquan Brisker, center, visits with fans from his hometown during the NFL team's training camp in Latrobe, Pa., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Pittsburgh Steelers safety Jaquan Brisker, center, visits with fans from his hometown during the NFL team's training camp in Latrobe, Pa., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
