Alvin Kamara Will Play in Week 2
New Orleans Saints veteran running back Alvin Kamara will make his season debut in Week 2 on the road against the Baltimore Ravens, with head coach Kellen Moore telling reporters he expects Kamara to play. Moore said he “feels good” about Kamara’s chances after the veteran back was a full practice participant Wednesday.
Kamara sprained his MCL on Aug. 18 during a joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys, an injury initially expected to sideline him for about a month. He returned to practice ahead of schedule, and the Saints held him out of Sunday’s overtime loss to the Detroit Lions as a precaution, even though Moore indicated afterward that Kamara could have played if needed. “I think it was just a matter of time on task, getting a full week’s work,” Moore said. “I thought he did an amazing job to put himself in a position last week to practice really well. And so he’s in a great place.”
It’s bad news for fantasy managers who might have picked up Kendre Miller off waivers, and it also caps the ceiling for free agent addition Travis Etienne Jr., who underwhelmed in his Saints debut with just 9 carries for 46 yards to go with 7 catches for 32 yards. New Orleans managed only 91 rushing yards as a team in the 31-30 loss, with most of its offense coming through Shough’s arm.
Kamara took a pay cut in July as part of a reworked deal to remain in New Orleans after the team signed Etienne to a four-year deal worth roughly $47-48 million in free agency. He’s now guaranteed a $6 million base salary in what’s his 10th season with the franchise, with incentives pushing his max earnings to $8.5 million. Last season was a career-low year across the board for the 31-year-old, limited to 11 games and finishing under 1,000 scrimmage yards for the first time in his career.
Fantasy Impact
In terms of the Saints offense as a whole, getting Karma back helps the passing game and makes our Tyler Shough Start ’em recommendation that much more, but as far as Kamara goes, he’s not worth starting.
Don’t be surprised if the Saints ease him back into the fold given how recently he returned to practice, which would make him a fairly volatile RB3/flex option in PPR formats early on. Once fully healthy and integrated, Kamara is expected to take a back seat to Etienne and serve primarily as the team’s third-down pass-catching back, still a role with real weekly PPR appeal given his track record.
