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2019 Saints Season in Review: Alvin Kamara

Injuries aside, the New Orleans Saints still got a strong season from Alvin Kamara. It can be summed up with a strong start and strong finish.

John Hendrix

As a rookie in 2017, Alvin Kamara wowed the football world with many jaw-dropping plays with the New Orleans Saints. 2018 was no different, as Kamara found the end zone 18 total times (14 rushing, 4 receiving) while accounting for a second-straight season with over 1,500 rushing and receiving yards. Heading into 2019, Kamara was viewed as the top guy in New Orleans with the departure of Mark Ingram to the Baltimore Ravens. The Saints would bring in Latavius Murray via free agency to compliment Kamara, and it felt like the team had a good one-two punch going into the new season.

Kamara never toppled 100 rushing yards or 100 receiving yards in a single game in 2019, but his first game against the Texans (97 rushing yards) looked to be a sign of things to come. In Week 3 against the Seahawks with Teddy Bridgewater at the helm, Kamara was instrumental in moving the ball and found the end zone twice in a big road win. However, that'd be the last time he'd score until December 22 against the Titans.

Alvin Kamara - At a Glance

  • Approximate Value: 12
  • Pro Football Focus Grade: 68.8
  • Pro Football Focus Rank: 32 out of 58
  • Rushing Grade: 68.8
  • Receiving Grade: 69.0
  • Total Snaps: 667
  • Total Rush Attempts: 171
  • Rushing Yards: 797 (56.9 average/game)
  • Rushing Touchdowns: 5
  • Total Receptions: 81 (97 targets)
  • Receiving Yards: 533 (6.6 average)
  • Receiving Touchdowns: 1

Although it may not have been the dominant performances from his first two seasons, Kamara still toppled 100 yards from scrimmage in six separate games for New Orleans in 2019. Injuries certainly played a role in his production, and as Kamara described in an interview with Ian Rapoport, it wasn't until the final two to three games until he felt like himself again. Still, his 1,330 total yards from scrimmage earned him a spot in team history, joining Deuce McAllister (2002-2004) as only the second Saints player with three consecutive seasons of 1,300 scrimmage yards.

Alvin Kamara enters this season with a lot to prove, especially with it being a contract year. It wouldn't be out of this world to see him hold out for a deal like Michael Thomas did last offseason, but Kamara is just one of the team's priorities to address from the stellar 2017 draft class. New Orleans does have an advantage with Ryan Ramczyk or Marshon Lattimore by picking up their fifth-year options, but the verdict is still out on who gets it. At this point, Ramczyk could be more of a priority. However you slice it, Kamara is going to be a large part of the New Orleans offense in 2020, and the Saints need him at his best if they want to make a deep postseason run.

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John Hendrix
JOHN HENDRIX

I officially started covering the New Orleans Saints & other NFL topics in 2011. My work has been featured on various outlets over the years. I worked closely with Skyhorse Publishing in Fall 2018 to update the book, Tales From the New Orleans Saints Sidelines, which filled in all Saints material from the 2013-2017 seasons. Prior to joining Saints News Network, I served as the Managing Editor of SB Nation's Canal Street Chronicles for 3.5 years, and before that with FanSided's Who Dat Dish as the Managing Editor for several years. I have also had experiences of being a freelance Saints reporter for The Sun Herald in Biloxi, MS and a contributing writer for WDSU, a local NBC TV station in New Orleans. I have appeared on a vast amount of TV and Radio shows, both nationally and locally. For tips, comments, or suggestions, please contact me at johnhendrix@saintsnews.net