{"id":183701,"date":"2025-07-05T15:46:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-05T15:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/183701\/"},"modified":"2025-07-05T15:46:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-05T15:46:18","slug":"saints-countdown-to-nfl-kickoff-with-the-history-of-number-64","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/183701\/","title":{"rendered":"Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 64"},"content":{"rendered":"

Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 64<\/a> originally appeared on Athlon Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We are now 64 days away from the opening game of the 2025 season for the New Orleans Saints. After a 5-12 finish to last season, the Saints open this year by hosting the Arizona Cardinals.<\/p>\n

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New Orleans will be embarking on their 59th NFL season. However, they’ll do it with a new head coach on the sidelines in Kellen Moore. Wearing number 64 for the Saints is offensive lineman Nick Saldiveri. A fourth round choice in the 2023 NFL Draft, Saldiveri hopes to grab a roster spot for a third straight year. Here’s a look through the only 10 players who have worn No. 64 with New Orleans.<\/p>\n

Saints History of 64\"Aug<\/p>\n

Aug 26, 2016; New Orleans Saints tackle Zach Strief (64) against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ray Hester, LB (1971-73)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Andy Maurer, OG (1974)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Dave Lafary, T\/G (1977-85)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ted Elliott, DT (1987)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Scott Adams, OL (1994)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Robert Newkirk, DT (1999)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Kendyl Jacox, OG (2002-05)\u2022 Zach Strief, OT (2006-17)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Will Clapp, C\/G (2018-21)<\/p>\n

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\u2022 Nick Saldiveri, G\/T (2022-present)<\/p>\n

\"Former<\/p>\n

Former New Orleans Saint Ray Hester (64). Credit: nasljerseys.com<\/p>\n

New Orleans native and Tulane University star Ray Hester was also the first Saints player to put on 64. A linebacker, Hester recorded one sack and recovered three fumbles in 27 games over three years as a Saint. After a brief career in the World Football League in 1974, Hester sadly passed away with leukemia in 1977 at just 28.<\/p>\n

Andy Maurer was the first offensive player to wear 64 for New Orleans, playing five games in his only year with the team. Dave Lafary would be the first Saints draft choice to suit up in number 64.<\/p>\n

\"New<\/p>\n

New Orleans Saints offensive lineman Dave Lafary (64) against the San Francisco 49ers. Credit: Pinterest <\/p>\n

A fifth round pick in 1977, Lafary was with the Saints for the entirety of his nine-year career. He appeared in 109 games over that span, starting 58 as the second longest tenure for any New Orleans player to wear 64.<\/p>\n

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Between 1986 and 2001, only three players would wear 64 for the Saints. None lasted for even an entire season, combining to play just eight games with no starts.<\/p>\n

Kendyl Jacox joined the Saints as a free agent in 2002. He’d stick with the team for four years as an underrated member of the offensive line. Over those four seasons, Jacox started 55 of his 56 games played with the team. It is the third longest tenure of any number 64 with the Saints.<\/p>\n

\"Offensive<\/p>\n

Offensive lineman Kendyl Jacox (64) blocks on a running play for the New Orleans Saints. Credit: Pinterest <\/p>\n

Not much was expected when New Orleans used a Round 7 pick in the 2006 NFL Draft on a Northwestern Wildcats lineman named Zach Strief. What happened instead was one of the most underrated offensive linemen in franchise history.<\/p>\n

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Strief appeared in nine games with one start as a rookie, then was used in nearly every game as an extra lineman between 2007 and 2010. By 2011, Strief was the team’s starting right tackle. He’d hold that job for six seasons, until an injury early in 2017 forced his retirement at the end of the year.<\/p>\n

Zach Strief played 12 seasons with the Saints. He played in 158 games with 94 starts, by far the most of any player that’s worn 64 for the franchise. Strief will likely be inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n

\"Sep<\/p>\n

Sep 30, 2013; New Orleans Saints tackle Zach Strief (64) blocks during a game against the Miami Dolphins. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

LSU Tigers star Will Clapp succeeded Strief in 64 in 2018. A seventh round choice in the 2018 NFL Draft, Clapp would play his first four seasons in New Orleans. He was used as a reserve lineman over that time, appearing in 34 games with seven starts.<\/p>\n

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Clapp returned to New Orleans this offseason as a free agent. However, he’ll be in a different number through training camp as he attempts to make the Saints roster.<\/p>\n

New Orleans traded up to select Nick Saldiveri with the first pick in Round 4 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Over his first two years, Saldiveri has appeared in 15 contests while making 6 starts. He’ll now face a stiff competition from Clapp and others just to make the roster this summer.<\/p>\n

Related: New Orleans Saints Sign RB Cam Akers To Bolster Backfield<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 66<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 67<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 68<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 69<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 84<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Saints Countdown To Kickoff With The History Of Number 94<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports<\/a> on Jul 5, 2025, where it first appeared.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 64 originally appeared on Athlon Sports. We are…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":183702,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[40022,390,40021,7,40020,7211,251,896,55,6,15,20416,8243,453,57,40023,252,8532,16837],"class_list":{"0":"post-183701","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-andy-maurer","9":"tag-arizona-cardinals","10":"tag-dave-lafary","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-kendyl-jacox","13":"tag-lsu-tigers","14":"tag-miami-dolphins","15":"tag-new-orleans","16":"tag-new-orleans-saints","17":"tag-nfl","18":"tag-nfl-draft","19":"tag-nick-saldiveri","20":"tag-northwestern-wildcats","21":"tag-offensive-lineman","22":"tag-pittsburgh-steelers","23":"tag-ray-hester","24":"tag-san-francisco-49ers","25":"tag-will-clapp","26":"tag-zach-strief"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114801409091540374","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=183701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183701\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/183702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=183701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=183701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=183701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}