Cade Mays
Mays at the Senior Bowl in 2022 | |||||||
| Detroit Lions | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Center | ||||||
| Roster status | Active | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | April 26, 1999 Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||||
| Listed weight | 325 lb (147 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Knoxville Catholic | ||||||
| College | Georgia (2018–2019) Tennessee (2020–2021) | ||||||
| NFL draft | 2022: 6th round, 199th overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| |||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||
| |||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2025 | |||||||
| |||||||
Cade Montgomery Mays (born April 26, 1999) is an American professional football center for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs and Tennessee Volunteers.
College career
Mays started his college career at Georgia. As a freshman in 2018, he earned Freshman All-American honors as well as being selected to the SEC All-Freshman Team. During his two years with the Bulldogs, he had at least one start for each position across the offensive line.[1] After the 2019 season, he transferred to Tennessee.[2] He then played two years for the Volunteers, primarily at the right tackle position.[3] He earned a Second-team All-SEC selection at the end of the 2021 season by the AP and league coaches.
Professional career
Pre-draft statistics
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4+3⁄4 in (1.95 m) |
311 lb (141 kg) |
34+1⁄8 in (0.87 m) |
10 in (0.25 m) |
5.24 s | 1.81 s | 3.02 s | 4.63 s | 7.57 s | 26.0 in (0.66 m) |
8 ft 6 in (2.59 m) |
21 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[4][5] | ||||||||||||
Carolina Panthers (first stint)
2022
Mays was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the 6th round of the 2022 NFL Draft, being selected 199th overall. He made his NFL debut in Week 7 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He made his first start in Week 12 against the Denver Broncos.[6] He appeared in 11 games and made two starts in his rookie season.[7]
2023
In the 2023 season, Mays appeared in 16 games and started five.[8]
2024
On August 28, 2024, Mays was released by the Panthers.[9]
New York Giants
On September 10, 2024, Mays was signed to the New York Giants practice squad.[10]
Carolina Panthers (second stint)
On October 8, 2024, Mays was re-signed by the Carolina Panthers off the Giants practice squad.[11]
On March 12, 2025, the Panthers placed an original-round tender on Mays.[12] He was named the starting center in Week 3 following an injury to Austin Corbett, and started 12 games on the season.
Detroit Lions
On March 9, 2026, Mays signed with the Detroit Lions on a three-year contract worth $25 million.[13]
Personal life
His brother, Cooper, also played center for Tennessee.[14]
References
- ^ Schlabach, Mark. "OL Cade Mays transfers from Georgia to Tennessee". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
- ^ Schlabach, Mark (September 17, 2020). "Vols OL Mays granted transfer waiver by NCAA". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
- ^ "Cade Mays – Football". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
- ^ "Cade Mays Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
- ^ "2022 Draft Scout Cade Mays, Tennessee NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
- ^ "Denver Broncos at Carolina Panthers – November 27th, 2022". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
- ^ "Cade Mays 2022 Game Log". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
- ^ "Cade Mays 2023 Game Log". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ Gantt, Darin (August 28, 2024). "Panthers claim six new players off waivers". Panthers.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ "Giants re-sign FB/TE Jakob Johnson to active roster". Giants.com. September 10, 2024. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Gantt, Darin (October 8, 2024). "Panthers add offensive line and outside linebacker depth". Panthers.com. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ^ Gantt, Darin (March 7, 2025). "Cade Mays, LaBryan Ray return for 2025". Panthers.com. Retrieved March 13, 2025.
- ^ "Lions sign unrestricted free agent OL Cade Mays". DetroitLions.com. March 12, 2025. Retrieved March 12, 2026.
- ^ Hunte, Sydney (November 26, 2020). "Tennessee's Cade, Cooper Mays discuss bond as brothers, teammates on Volunteers football team". Saturday Down South. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
External links
- Career statistics from Pro Football Reference
- Detroit Lions bio
- Georgia Bulldogs bio
- Tennessee Volunteers bio