Ja’Lynn Polk’s NFL career is over before it really got rolling.
The New Orleans Saints put the wide receiver on the reserve/retired list Sunday after the 24-year-old decided to step away, bringing a two-season run to an end. New Orleans did not offer a reason for the move, and Polk had not publicly addressed it at the time of the transaction.
Polk had already been out of the mix for the Saints’ last two training camp practices, which the team said were for personal reasons. On Sunday, head coach Kellen Moore also pointed to “personal things” while explaining Polk’s absence.
The former second-round pick entered the league with a lot of buzz. The New England Patriots took him No. 37 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft after his breakout final season at Washington, where he posted 69 catches for 1,159 yards and nine touchdowns and added a rushing score. Before his time with the Huskies, he started his college career at Texas Tech.
New England drafted Polk with the idea that he could become another weapon for rookie quarterback Drake Maye, but his first year in the league was rough. He played in 15 games and started seven, finishing with 12 receptions on 33 targets for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
A shoulder injury then knocked the momentum off track. The Patriots put Polk on injured reserve during the 2025 preseason, and he missed the entire season. After that, New England sent Polk and a 2028 seventh-round pick to New Orleans for a 2027 sixth-round selection.
Polk never got into a regular-season or preseason game for the Saints, though he did take part in offseason workouts and training camp while trying to win a spot in a crowded receiver room that included Chris Olave, Jordyn Tyson, Devaughn Vele, Bryce Lance and Barion Brown.
He leaves the game with two years left on his four-year, $9.6 million rookie deal. His NFL line ends at 15 games, 12 catches, 87 receiving yards and two touchdown receptions.
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