Randall Gay

Randall Gay is a backup cornerback on the New Orleans Saints. He has played in the NFL since 2004, the four seasons with the New England Patriots. Gay signed a $17.6 million contract with the Saints before the 2008-09 season.http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3273625 A native of Baton Rouge, Gay is one of three defensive backs on the Saints who are from Louisiana, along with Tracy Porter and Greg Fassitt.

Despite being an undrafted free agent, Gay won a roster spot and eventually started the Super Bowl as a rookie, leading the Patriots in tackles as they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21. After a couple of injury-plagued years in his second and third seasons, he again played in the Super Bowl 2008, when his Patriots lost to the New York Giants. When the Saints face off against the Indianapolis Colts, Gay will be playing in his third Super Bowl in just six years in the league. Gay also played on a championship team in college, the 2003 LSU Tigers.

In his second year with the Saints, Gay has performed as a backup cornerback and sometimes nickel back. Because of injuries to starters Tracy Porter and Jabari Greer, Gay has played a great deal this year, especially during the second half of the season. Gay himself sat out for two games, in weeks 13 and 16, because of injuries, reflecting a devastating run of injuries for the Saints secondary this season. He is expected to play a big role in the Super Bowl, as the rival Colts often send three or four receivers out, which forces defenses to play a nickel defense.

Gay's best games were in week 4, a 24-10 victory over the Jets in which he had an interception and two passes defended, and in week 14, a three-point defeat of the Atlanta Falcons in which Gay recorded eight tackles and a pass defended. He finished the season with 37 tackles and five passes defended. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/stats?playerId=5887