Saints running back Alvin Kamara walked into the locker room, hoisted himself on top of an entertainment center and grinned at the assembled reporters.
He was back.
“Nobody wants to be out,” he said. “I’m back, I’m ready.”
Kamara hasn’t played since he essentially hobbled through a game against the Jaguars on Oct. 13. He missed the next two games because of knee and ankle issues, although there was a discussion about him potentially playing against the Cardinals before the bye. He ultimately sat out that game, giving him three weeks’ rest.
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“I do feel fresh, I wouldn’t say a benefit, it’s like a downfall kind of,” he said. “I wish I was out there, I feel like I missed so much, and yet it wasn’t that much, you know what I’m saying? … I’m happy to be back, just happy to be back on the field practicing with my teammates, kind of like a regular functioning member of this team, you know? Because when you’re hurt you’re kind of on the backburner a little bit. You kind of miss out.”
Kamara practiced fully on Thursday, and even Saints coach Sean Payton, who is normally mum about injuries, conceded that he was ready to go.
“I fully expected him to be ready to play, and I thought he looked really good yesterday,” Payton said on Thursday.
Kamara is part of a large contingent of offensive players the Saints were without for the first part of the season. Quarterback Drew Brees missed five games. Wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith hasn’t been healthy since September.
Even tight end Jared Cook, who has missed the last two games, commented that he’s only gotten one full game with Brees.
“I’m excited. I only missed one game without Drew,” he said. “Me and him get a chance to come in and kind of help this offense be even more productive than it has been.”
That’s why Thursday’s practice report was fairly remarkable. Everybody on the active roster, even P.J. Williams, who missed the last two games with suspension, was a participant.
“It’s scary, we’ve got so much talent and I think we know what we’re capable of. … Knowing what we have, I think everybody is excited,” Kamara said.
As the Saints come off their bye week and attempt to make a second-half run, their numbers look unusual for a Sean Payton team. Their total offense ranks 14th, scoring offense 15th and passing offense 10th.
In a total role reversal, it’s the defense that’s leading statistically, ranking fifth in total defense, 10th in scoring defense and fourth in rushing defense.
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But understanding the numbers means understanding what the Saints have been working with: a backup quarterback, a lack of a No. 1 tight end and a steep drop-off at wide receiver after Michael Thomas.
Thomas leads the Saints with 73 catches for 875 yards. The next two leaders are running backs Kamara (33, 276) and Latavius Murray (23, 153). The dropoff to the next receiver, Ted Ginn Jr., is steep. He has only 20 catches for 296 yards.
After Ginn, Cook, tight end Josh Hill and quarterback Taysom Hill round out the top seven. It’s no wonder the Saints made phone calls before the trade deadline to see what offensive options were available.
That the Saints have made it work is impressive. Murray was able to step into Kamara’s role without much of a hitch, ripping off back-to-back games with 100-plus yards rushing.
“I knew he could. He’s a good back. He’s done it elsewhere,” Kamara said. “He was great in Oakland, had Pro Bowl years in Oakland, I think. It was just a matter of being out there and doing it, you know? I think he felt good. I talked to him after every game, I talked to him during the week. He did a great job.”
But it also raises the possibilities of what might come next if the offense manages to stay healthy. The Saints have a running back with fresh legs back in the fold, another wide receiver and tight end in the mix, and even Hill is an additional receiving option now that the Saints don’t need him as a direct backup at quarterback.
With Murray coming along, it’s likely the Saints could allow him and Kamara to share the workload. It’s probably the most possibilities they’ve had offensively since the season opener.
Scary indeed.
“Me and Latavius, I had a conversation with him early in the season, it was probably the second or third game, and I was telling him, like, just because of the balance of the plays, I was like, ‘It’s going to balance out, it’s going to eventually balance out,'” Kamara said. “He was like, ‘I’m good.’ It’s an unselfish team. (He said) ‘I’m good, I’m not trippin.’ I said, ‘I’m telling you, it’s going to balance out.’
“When we get down this stretch, it’s going to be even more effective. However it shakes out, it shakes out. I’m ready. It’s not like I’m selfish, I don’t need the ball every play. He’s fully capable of it too.”
(Photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)
Katherine Terrell is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the New Orleans Saints and sports betting. Before joining The Athletic in 2019, she covered the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN from 2016 to 2019 and began her career at the New Orleans Times-Picayune, covering the Saints and horse racing from 2012 to 2016. She is a native of Baton Rouge, La., and a graduate of LSU. Follow Katherine on Twitter @Kat_Terrell
