Saints plan to work out dynamic USFL running back Darius Victor
By Kristen Wong
The New Orleans Saints continue to prepare for Alvin Kamara’s potential suspension in 2022 and plan to work out a dynamic running back from the USFL, Darius Victor.
Behind Kamara, NOLA has quite a few contenders for the starting RB job should Kamara miss time including Mark Ingram, Tony Jones Jr., and Abram Smith.
Who Dat Dish’s Leigh Oleszczak recently ranked the candidates for the RB3 position, but adding Victor to the mix would shake up the depth chart a bit.
Darius Victor won the USFL’s Offensive Player of the Year award this past season and will get his second tryout with the Saints after being briefly signed by NOLA as an undrafted free agent back in 2017. Victor appeared in four preseason games that year and recorded 35 carries for 126 yards and a touchdown, yet he didn’t impress enough to earn a spot on the final roster.
Will things be different this time around?
The Saints plan to work out RB Darius Victor, per source. The USFL's 2022 Offensive MVP was in camp with the Saints in 2017 before spending time with the Arizona Cardinals.
— Mike Triplett (@MikeTriplett) July 19, 2022
Makes sense that the Saints plan to work out running back Darius Victor, the USFL's Offensive POY, as reported. RB coach Joel Thomas is familiar with Victor from his time with Saints as UDFA in 2017. And RB depth remains a roster priority, even if Alvin Kamara avoids suspension.
— Jeff Duncan (@JeffDuncan_) July 19, 2022
New Orleans Saints plan to host USFL running back Darius Victor for a tryout
Despite lacking NFL experience, Victor made his mark in the USFL, most recently helping the New Jersey Generals finish with a 9-1 record; Victor led the league with nine rushing touchdowns and finished third overall with 577 rushing yards.
Compared to the steep RB competition in 2017 (Kamara, Ingram, Adrian Peterson), Victor has a much better shot at making this year’s Saints’ roster if he can prove his worth early.
Familiar faces like Dwayne Washington and Tony Jones Jr. failed to make a significant impact last season, so at least Victor gets to start on a mostly clean slate. If Kamara does end up getting suspended, the Saints could use a running-back-by-committee approach and there may be no obvious plug-in replacement for Kamara.
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Either way, Victor gets another opportunity to win a spot on the 90-man squad and serve as very crucial insurance in the Saints’ running back corps in 2022.