Ja'Lynn Polk retired from the NFL at 24 years old on Sunday, the New Orleans Saints placed him on the reserve/retired list less than a week into training camp, ending a professional career that never got off the ground the way anyone hoped it would. Saints head coach Kellen Moore said Polk had been excused from the last two practices for personal reasons. Polk was selected 37th overall by the New England Patriots in the 2024 NFL Draft out of Washington, where he had 1,159 receiving yards and nine touchdowns in his final college season. The Patriots traded him and a seventh-round pick to New Orleans last September for a sixth-rounder while he was on injured reserve. "Several people in the Saints organization said they were excited to see what Polk would do with his second opportunity," per the New Orleans Times-Picayune.