The New Orleans Saints rushing offense was around the middle of the league last season, averaging 116.6 yards per game. A lot factors into that, but the room not being very deep certainly played a big role. That won’t be the case this season, as the room is headlined by Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams. Pro Football Focus is especially excited for this duo, as their Trevor Sikkema put both backs in the top 32 running backs ahead of the 2023 season.
Kamara is coming off of one of his least productive seasons, just four touchdowns in 2022, but the argument could be made that it was more of a product of the environment instead of his ability. While he likely won’t see the field for the entire season, due to a looming suspension, he should have better luck on the field with Derek Carr under center and ideally a more consistent offensive line. Here is Sikkema’s reasoning for ranking him as the 13th-best running back in the NFL:
Kamara isn’t getting the same usage he was when Drew Brees was his quarterback and Sean Payton was his head coach, but that doesn’t mean he’s significantly worse as a player. His 77.7 rushing grade and 4.0 yards-per-carry figure in 2022 aren’t far from his career averages, and though his receiving totals are much lower than what they used to be, he still averaged 8.6 yards per reception and brought in more than 90% of his catchable passes last season. He’s not threatening the top five at the position, but he’s still a very good back.
As for Williams, he’s coming off a career year with over 1,000 yards rushing and a staggering 17 touchdowns. He dominated the goal line, an offensive metric that the Saints desperately need help with. His addition, at his price point, is one of the better moves that the Saints made. He’ll be the best running mate that Kamara has had since the original days of his duo with Mark Ingram. Here is why Sikkema ranked Williams as the 25th best running back in the league:
Williams led the league in rushing touchdowns in 2022 (17). He also rushed for more than 1,000 yards for the first time in his career. All that wasn’t just due to a career high in carries, as Williams averaged more than 4.0 yards per carry. However, his relatively low 2.8 yards-after-contact average and 0.11 missed tackles forced per attempt are why he’s lower on this list.
The Saints also added rookie Kendre Miller in the 2023 draft, someone who is more than capable of making future versions of the list. The New Orleans running back room is one that will be extremely fun to watch this year.
