Audric Estime being released with an injury settlement was a tough pill to swallow, but the running back room was suddenly a stacked room. Tough decisions had to be made, and his injury took a good opportunity off the table for him. The New Orleans Saints releasing Daniel Carlson Tuesday afternoon was the big story, but re-signing Estime to a now depleted running back room.
The Saints have two healthy running backs currently, Kendre Miller and Alvin Kamara, with updates pending on Travis Etienne and CJ Donaldson. The Saints are bound to run the football better than they did against the Steelers, but it's still going to be hilarious if Estime comes in and leads the team in rushing yards, let alone has a good game.
The former Saint turned current Saints running back does have some inside information on their upcoming opponent. Estime was with the Browns for about three weeks and scored a touchdown in the one game he played in.
Travis Etienne returning this week is still no foregone conclusion
Etienne hasn't played since suffering a hamstring injury against the Raiders in Week 3. He's done his four weeks on injured reserve, and even got a bonus week because of the bye week. Fans are hopeful to see him return to the starting lineup.
This could be a sign of the team preparing for Etienne not being available. Along with Tyson, we'll get an update on Etienne this Wednesday. We'll be intently watching to see if the Saints approach him with as much caution as they have Tyson.
If Etienne can't go, it's going to create some very interesting conversations around Sunday. We were robbed of a competition between a healthy Estime and a healthy Miller this offseason. One could even argue that when healthy Estime was the best running back on the team during the preseason.
If he stayed healthy, Estime felt like the leader in the clubhouse for the RB3 job. He was also more successful than Miller when on the field last season. Estime had a 30 yard run and overall was more efficient.
It'll be interesting to watch the carry distribution between Estime, Miller and Kamara if those are the running backs. Estime has made great usage of the opportunities. It wouldn't be surprising to see him do it again.
If he does, Miller could find out quickly that the preseason battle he thought was in his rearview is directly in front of him.
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