Alvin Kamara hasn't played particularly well for a while now. Over the past three years, he's averaging under 4.0 yards per carry. But this is fantasy football, and opportunity sometimes counts for more than ability. Kamara is probably undervalued so far.
New Orleans, due to their annually pushing cap problems another year into the future, is stuck with Kamara as its featured running back. The current backup is Jamaal Williams, who's definitely washed up -- averaged just 2.9 yards per carry last year, which is a clear sign that the glue factory awaits. But Williams being on the roster is actually better for New Orleans' cap situation than being released, so he's back for another year. Kendre Miller, last year's third-round pick who was supposed to challenge for the starting job by now, is on IR with a hamstring injury.
The Saints tried to bring in Kene Nwangwu, but released him with a failed physical designation. Undrafted Jordan Mims is the other running back on the roster, and he earned the job in the preseason (but has yet to prove he's NFL-caliber; bounced around on practice squads last year). Should be a heavy dose of Kamara to open the season.
Kamara caught 75 passes last season, 2nd only to Breece Hall. That's pretty valuable in PPR leagues. Granted, it would be nice if he did a little more with his opportunities. There were 20 running backs to catch at least 40 passes last year, and only six did less with those receptions than Kamara, averaging just over 6 yards per catch.
| RB RECEIVING, 40-PLUS CATCHES, 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Avg |
| James Cook, Buff. | 54 | 44 | 445 | 10.1 |
| Samaje Perine, Den. | 56 | 50 | 455 | 9.1 |
| Rachaad White, T.B. | 70 | 64 | 549 | 8.6 |
| Austin Ekeler, LAC | 74 | 51 | 436 | 8.6 |
| Christian McCaffrey, S.F. | 83 | 67 | 564 | 8.4 |
| Bijan Robinson, Atl. | 86 | 58 | 487 | 8.4 |
| Travis Etienne, Jac. | 73 | 58 | 476 | 8.2 |
| Antonio Gibson, Was. | 59 | 48 | 389 | 8.1 |
| Breece Hall, NYJ | 95 | 76 | 591 | 7.8 |
| Tyjae Spears, Ten. | 70 | 52 | 385 | 7.4 |
| Jerome Ford, Cle. | 63 | 44 | 319 | 7.3 |
| Joe Mixon, Cin. | 64 | 52 | 376 | 7.2 |
| Saquon Barkley, NYG | 60 | 41 | 280 | 6.8 |
| Alvin Kamara, N.O. | 86 | 75 | 466 | 6.2 |
| Ezekiel Elliott, N.E. | 65 | 51 | 313 | 6.1 |
| Jahmyr Gibbs, Det. | 71 | 52 | 316 | 6.1 |
| Jaylen Warren, Pitt. | 74 | 61 | 370 | 6.1 |
| Tony Pollard, Dall. | 67 | 55 | 311 | 5.7 |
| Isiah Pacheco, K.C. | 49 | 44 | 244 | 5.6 |
| Javonte Williams, Den. | 58 | 47 | 228 | 4.9 |
On behalf of Kamara, this metric doesn't necessarily indicate a lack of explosiveness. Jahmyr Gibbs and Jaylen Warren also show up low on the list (as do some more expected names, like Zeke and Javonte coming off injury). Sometimes it's just about how well the team is blocking those pass plays.
Regardless, those in PPR leagues don't have to care too much -- it's the volume of the catches that counts the most. It's a new offense which presumably will be looking to be more aggressive downfield, but Derek Carr is Derek Carr, and the Saints will still be throwing Kamara a bunch of passes. At least until Miller is healthy, whenever that might be, they don't have another running back to put on the field.
--Andy Richardson