When a team lands a good prospect in the draft the cycle typically goes as such.
Player is drafted to fill role, he exceeds role, gets paid, role expands to match pay, player is focal point, player ages, player declines, role shrinks, player is discarded or replaced.
One could argue Alvin is at the "role shrinks" portion of his career, and I think if you'd asked him, he'd be completely open to that, as he's expressed a desire to be used efficiently and early in the season lobbied for Kendre Miller to be more involved in the offense.
Just as that began coming into fruition Miller was lost to an ACL tear and the weight was thrust back onto Kamara's shoulders with lackluster results
AK finished the season injured and with his lowest statistical output of his career in several categories including ypc (3.8), touchdowns (1) catches (33), and missed tackles forced (19), spurring suggestions that 41 was now washed and the Saints should potentially trade their former 3rd round pick.
Let's be clear, Kamara is a running back over the age of 30 with 1,767 rushing attempts to his name to pair with 785 targets in the passing game.
He's got some mileage on him but just last year, Kamara had a statistical bounce back season in Kubiak's outside zone scheme where he ran for the 3rd most rushing yards of his career and narrowly missed the elusive 1000 yard season by 50 yards. His 1,393 scrimmage yards were his most since 2020 when he had 1,471.
However, when you look at Alvin's utilization, one could suggest that he wasn't maximized in Kellen Moore's scheme.
One of the most glaring things you notice is his lack of usage in the passing game. Alvin was targeted 39 times in 11 games. Expand that over an entire season and you're looking at 60 targets, easily the lowest of his career.
Mind you Kamara came into the league as dual threat runner and before getting to the "paid/focal point" of his career, averaged 109 targets per season in his first four seasons. That number dropped to 77 targets per season over the next four after he got paid and the Saints made him the primary ball carrier.
How did we get so far away from Alvin's best skillset?
Alvin's rookie year he was used out of the slot on 21.8% of his snaps, wide 21.5%, and only saw 4.5% of his snaps ask him to pass-block. Ironically 2017 was also statistically Alvin's most efficient year as a player.
Last year in Kellen's offense. 7.7% in the slot, 5.3% wide, and a whopping 16% of his snaps as a pass blocker.
Perhaps there's a reason Mickey Loomis said they need work on getting Alvin the right "opportunities".
Those opportunities won't come until the Saints find their new version of Mark Ingram. Someone has to fill the "boom" role so that the Saints can free Kamara up to be who he is at his core.
Popular opinion says Jeremiyah Love should be the selection and I'd be ok with that, but Love doesn't scream "boom" to me. He profiles like a bigger Reggie Bush and some of his skillset overlaps with AK's. Arguably they'd compete for receiving targets, something we at SFT are lobbying to bring back to Kamara's game.
So who are a few players we have in mind? Glad you asked.
Jonah Coleman
Mike Washington Jr
Adam Randall
All profile as bigger backs at 220+ that can handle 1st, 2nd, and goal line carries. If you're unfamiliar with the backs peep the video's below to put them on your radar.
If the Saints decide to go free agency, a player like Javonte Williams also fits the mold, but if I may put on my GM hat for a moment, 2nd contract RB's are typically on the decline since the position has what amounts to a 5 year shelf life if you're lucky. Better to draft and discard than purchase a used lemon.
No matter which direction the Saints decide to go to fill the role, it's a must they maximize what's left of Alvin's career by finding a young back to handle the primary
