07-07-2025
Countdown to Kickoff: Jerry Fontenot is the Saints Player of Day 62
Fontenot is one of the best players to wear No. 62 in Saints history
There are 62 days left before the New Orleans Saints start their 2025 regular season. The Saints will open their year at home against the Arizona Cardinals, but with Kellen Moore on the sidelines as their new head coach. No New Orleans player is currently wearing number 62. Guard Lucas Patrick wore the number last season for the team. Instead, our choice for Saints Player of the Day is one of the best players to suit up in No. 62 for the franchise: Jerry Fontenot.
A local graduate of Lafayette High School in Louisiana, Fontenot would go on to star at Texas A&M. He'd cap his Aggies career as a 1st Team All-Southwest Conference selection in 1988. The Chicago Bears and head coach Mike Ditka then selected Fontenot midway through Round 3 of the 1989 NFL Draft. Fontenot played in every game as a rookie, but somewhat sparingly as a reserve. He'd see increasingly more playing time through 1990 and 1991, combining for nine starts while playing every contest.
By 1992, Ditka's last year with Chicago, Fontenot was the team's starting center. He remained in that role even after Ditka's departure. Between 1992 and 1996, Fontenot started all of the Bears 80 regular season games. During Fontenot's eight years with Chicago, he'd play in 128 games with 89 starts and never missed a game.
When Mike Ditka was hired as coach of the New Orleans Saints in 1997, Jerry Fontenot returned to his home state to join his former coach. Fontenot started all 16 games at center for the Saints in 1997. The following year, Fontenot missed the first game of his career as injuries limited him to only four outings. He'd bounce back in 1999 and would go on to make 80 consecutive starts at center for New Orleans between 1999 and 2003.
Jerry Fontenot anchored a strong offensive line for otherwise abysmal teams under Ditka. He remained a standout player once Jim Haslett arrived as coach in 2000 and was an underrated member of an explosive offense. Fontenot appeared in 100 games in seven years with the Saints, starting every contest. Only Saints Hall of Famer John Hill has worn No. 62 for more games with New Orleans than Fontenot.
After the 2003 season, New Orleans released Fontenot. He'd go on to play his final NFL season with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2004. After retirement, Fontenot was an offensive assistant with the Green Bay Packers for 10 years from 2006 to 2015. He was part of a Packers staff that won Super Bowl XLV over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
