Jaguars Draft Profile: Jadarian Price, Running Back, Notre Dame

It isn’t always easy being in the same backfield as America’s top running back, Notre Dame’s Jadarian Price made the most of his opportunities, and as a result, could be an option for the Jacksonville Jaguars in this year’s draft.

Jaguars Roundtable is checking out a range of prospects in the Class of 2026 who might mesh with Jacksonville's current roster, coaching staff, and the team's X's and O's.

Offensive position players will be a focal point for the Jags, and NFL draft prospect profiles will feature offensive linemen Isaiah World out of Oregon and Penn State's Drew Shelton, as well as running back prospects Le'Veon Moss from Texas A&M, Mike Washington Jr. out of Arkansas, and Washington's Jonah Coleman.  The Jaguars could also consider adding depth at tight end with either Vanderbilt's Eli Stowers or Oscar Delp out of Georgia, and at receiver with Southern Cal's Ja'Kobi Lane. 

Defenders profiled in the series include elite linebackers the likes of Oklahoma's Kendal Daniels, Oregon's Bryce Boettcher, and Anthony Hill Jr. out of Texas, along with cornerbacks D'Angelo Ponds out of Indiana and Arizona State's Keith Abney, along with Cincinatti nose tackle Dontay Corleone, Oklahoma defensive end R Mason Thomas, Iowa State defensive tackle Domonique Orange and Alabama linebacker Deontae Lawson.

In this draft profile, we shine a spotlight on Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price.

At 5-foot-11 and 209 pounds, Price isn't known for his power. But he makes up for it with his explosiveness. In three seasons at Notre Dame, Price averaged six yards per carry, and during the team's run to the national championship game in 2024, he had runs of 65 and 70 yards.

This past season, he broke runs of 20 yards or more in each of Notre Dame's first seven games, forming arguably the most lethal backfield in the country with Heisman Trophy finalist Jeremiah Love.

Love, who is now seventh on Notre Dame's all-time rushing list, developed into one of the best players in recent program history. But Price found ways to contribute.

After missing his freshman season with an injury, Price split the backfield with Love in each of the next three years. He got his feet wet in 2023 (272 yards, three touchdowns, 47 carries), setting up his breakout season in 2024.

Price played a big part in what became Notre Dame's best season in almost four decades, ending the year with 746 yards, seven touchdowns and a 6.2 yards per carry average.

His production went down slightly in 2025 (674 yards, six YPC), but Price did set a career high in touchdowns with 11.

Price's explosive play capability wouldn't be possible if he didn't have the instincts and vision to exploit gaps. He's also quite good on special teams.   

In the 2023 and 2025 seasons, Price returned kicks for Notre Dame, picking up a total of nearly 800 yards and scoring three touchdowns.

Two of those returns came against USC (99 yards in 2023, 100 in 2025), and another came against Purdue (100 in 2025).

Although Price does have an injury history, sharing the backfield with Love gives him the advantage of coming into the draft with less mileage (280 carries) than a lot of other backs.

Protecting the football will be a point of emphasis for Price as he transitions to the pros. Although it wasn't an issue during his first two seasons, Price fumbled three times near the goal line in 2025, losing possession on two of those fumbles.

Price wasn't asked to do much in the  Irish's passing game, and ended his college career with just 15 receptions, so it's fair to wonder how versatile he is.

Price's limited workload is a positive in one way, in that he doesn't have a lot of wear and tear. But the downside is that it's unclear whether his 203-pound frame would be able to withstand the rigors of an NFL season if he's asked to do more.

Price did quite well at the NFL combine in Indianapolis this year, with NFL.com's combine score ranking him fourth among tailbacks.

He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.49 seconds, which is considered a solid time. Equally solid was his 35-inch vertical jump, and his 10-foot, 4-inch broad jump is considered above average. Price also benched pressed 21 reps, which was among the most of the running backs in Indy.

Right now, the Mock Draft Database has Price as the No. 45 overall prospect, with a good chance of sneaking into the first round. In fact, every mock draft the database accounted for has Price going to the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, who just lost Super Bowl MVP RB Kenneth Walker III to free agency. 

Currently, the Jags have, by general manager James Gladstone’s admission, a backfield by committee.

Jacksonville lost its leading rusher from last season, Travis Etienne, to free agency.

To account for that loss, Jacksonville signed Chris Rodriguez Jr., who had 500 yards and six touchdowns (4.5 yards per carry) for the Washington Commanders last season. Internally, Jacksonville returns Bhayshul Tuten (83 carries, 307 yards, five touchdowns in 2025) and LeQuint Allen Jr. (23 carries, 94 yards).

The Jags don't have a first-round pick due to what they gave up to draft Travis Hunter last year, so if Seattle does want Price, the only chance the Jags would have to get him would be to trade back into the first round. 

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