2024 is not the year to sleep on Saints running back Alvin Kamara in fantasy football

Despite the New Orleans Saints being on break until the start of training camp in late July, star running back Alvin Kamara currently has a lot going on. The veteran running back left mandatory minicamp ahead of the final practice for contract related reasons. Going into what is essentially the final year on his deal, Kamara is seeking an extension or more guaranteed money for this season.

Clearly, Kamara and the Saints organization aren’t on the same page. Now, with training camp under a month away, everything is up in the air. People are questioning if Kamara will be traded, if he’ll hold out, or if he’ll get the deal he’s looking for. All of the drama could be steering fantasy football general managers away from adding Kamara to their team.

Between the contract uncertainty, and the claims that the soon-to-be 29-year-old Kamara isn’t the player he once was, Kamara may not be considered a top pick in fantasy drafts anymore. However, believing that is a mistake. Fantasy analyst Andy Behrens, of Yahoo Sports, made that clear in a recent piece where he pleaded with fans to stop fading Alvin Kamara.

Alvin Kamara will still be a valuable fantasy football player in 2024

Behrens pointed out how Kamara finished last season as the overall RB5 on a per-game basis, but early fantasy drafters have made him RB17 this year. Behrens even criticized Yahoo Sports’ fantasy team for ranking Kamara 19 amongst running backs. He went on to explain that it would be a mistake to let him drop that low.

"Aside from age, it’s honestly tough to find a reason to actively fade Kamara. And yet many of you are clearly doing it. He displayed no glaring signs of decline last year — again, he was a top-five scorer in terms of per-game production — and he carries no unusual injury risk into the season ahead. In fact, his medical file is as clean as any you’ll find for a running back at any age or mileage."

- Andy Behrens (Yahoo Sports)

This is all facts. Not only is Kamara still a productive running back that catches a lot of passes, but he’s now playing in a system that will be built around his abilities. There’s a chance we could see Kamara have his best season yet. Add in the motivation factor that he could be playing for a new contract, and it’ll be malpractice to let him slide.

READ MORE