Yikes. The New Orleans Saints announced that veteran running back Jamaal Williams was questionable to return against the Carolina Panthers on Monday night after suffering a hamstring injury — meaning practice squad call-up Tony Jones Jr. was their only other option. Williams exited after picking up 29 yards on 9 carries. Jones had gained 6 yards on 2 tries.
Rookie draft pick Kendre Miller was inactive with his own hamstring injury. Kirk Merritt, another running back on the depth chart (who played wide receiver last year), was a healthy scratch. And Alvin Kamara is, of course, still in the middle of his three-game suspension. So the Saints were left with only Jones.
Buy Saints TicketsWell, not quite — the Saints went into this game planning a heavy dose of Taysom Hill as a runner, and he rewarded them by picking up 24 yards on just 4 carries early on. They’ll have to lean on him even heavier.