The discourse around Alvin Kamara has been wide-spanning this offseason. The New Orleans Saints running back has repeatedly projected as a fantasy football steal, but he was also left out of a CBS’ top-100 player list. There’s no true consensus on what to expect going into his first year with Kellen Moore.
ESPN is the latest to step into the mix with their annual preseason positional rankings. They narrowly view Kamara as a top-10 running back, with him occupying the final spot.
The list is compiled by votes from coaches, scouts and executives. Clearly they saw something last season that pushed Kamara back into the top-10 after being unranked a year ago.
Alvin Kamara’s value to the Saints will remain high under Kellen Moore
Kamara finished 2024 with 1503 yards from scrimmage. That total made his responsible for 26% of the Saints yards on the season. That was the seventh highest percentage in the league. He did this despite being out for the last three games.
A large part of why Kamara was able to achieve these numbers is injuries to Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed. This left Kamara as the go-to option in the run and pass game.
The Saints are hoping to avoid a repeat of their health woes this season. Even with a healthy receiving corps, Kamara will be highly valuable in Moore’s offense.
Moore’s usage of Saquan Barkley put a spotlight on his utilization of the running back. He also used Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard well in Dallas. 2025 is primed to be Kamara’s best usage since Sean Payton’s departure.
Kamara still has more in the tank
Moore should have a better plan for Kamara than the previous offensive coordinators, but it’s on Kamara to deliver. Questions will loom if he’s still capable of doing that as he approaches 30-years old.
Push the age to the side. What do you see? One coach said, "some of the elite traits are still there. He didn't have much of an offensive line or supporting cast last year. But he can still take a screen for big yardage and still has great contact balance." Kamara's traits are still present, and the pieces around Kamara should take a step up with the return of players like Olave and Shaheed.
With an inexperienced quarterback at the helm, Moore should lean on Kamara this year. There have also been changes to the offensive line. The success of those moves has yet to be determined but the unit should be better with just better luck health wise. With improved coaching and hopefully a healthier cast, Kamara's surroundings are set up for him to have an effective campaign and justify this ranking.