Underhill: Saints and Kamara finalizing a new deal

Travis Etienne is getting “the bulk” of the first-team reps on early downs, and Duncan notes “he’ll be surprised if it’s a Kamara-Mark Ingram-like 50-50 split when all is said and done.” It feels like Kamara is settling in for a lower situational role, but perhaps not situational enough for the comfort of Etienne-reliant fantasy managers, as the Saints’ new signing carries an ADP in the late 30s or early 40s on most sites.

Kamara can earn up to another $2.5 million via incentives. He was initially set to make up to $11.5 million before his deal was restructured on Wednesday. The Saints were pushing for him to take a pay cut this offseason, but it initially looked like Kamara wasn’t going to budge. Instead, he gives some money back and gets to stay in New Orleans, where he has been adamant about wanting to finish his career. Kamara will serve as Travis Etienne’s backup, likely seeing most of his work on passing downs. He could have some FLEX value in PPR leagues, but Etienne should see most of the carries and still some targets.

What does this mean for fantasy purposes? In short, it means he thinks the Saints are going to feature Etienne as an offensive focal point. Underhill believes the Saints are entering a “post-Alvin Kamara world,” although he acknowledges that Kamara may stick around for one more season. That said, Underhill thinks Etienne will operate as a “full-volume starter” and describes him as a “three-down player.” If Kamara does play for the Saints this season, Underhill does not think Kamara’s presence “changes the outcome significantly” for Etienne’s touch count. Toward the end of the segment, Underhill projects Etienne for 235 carries, 1,050 rushing yards, eight rushing touchdowns, 42 catches, 330 receiving yards and 3-4 receiving touchdowns. Splitting the difference on the receiving touchdowns brings the total to 231.5 PPR points, which would have made him the RB15 last season. Treating him as a high-end RB2 with RB1 upside makes sense.

The participants include Nick Underhill, Mike Triplett, John Hendrix and Adam Guttuso. Kamara’s status with the team is still up in the air, and Underhill notes that all four reporters “have Kamara on the roster for now, but none of us really understands the endgame there.” The Saints have reportedly been lining up RB Ty Chandler in the backfield, out wide and in the slot, theoretically foreshadowing Kamara’s role, if he indeed remains a Saint. If Kamara leaves, RB Travis Etienne can be expected to handle a high-end workload. If Kamara remains, his touch count could keep Etienne stuck in the fantasy RB2 tier.

Moore didn’t outright confirm that Kamara would be with the team this year. When asked whether Kamara would be on the team, Moore only said, “I think that’s how you always prepare.” Kamara and the Saints are in a bit of a standoff, with the Saints seemingly wanting him to take a pay cut while having no leverage to force the issue. The veteran runner made a surprise appearance at OTAs last week to make his presence known, though he was only with the team for a single day. Moore said he expects Kamara to be present at minicamp next week. For now, it looks like Kamara will be a Saint this year. He will likely play a change-of-pace role behind Travis Etienne.

Underhill outlined his thoughts on the run game in a lengthy piece, exploring how run game coordinator T.J. Paganetti plans to build the run game around his players’ strengths. With RB Travis Etienne set to operate as the lead back, the team can use Kamara selectively in space, running routes, on screens and by exploiting matchups. It remains to be seen whether Kamara, 30, will remain in New Orleans, but it sounds like he could end up with a PPR-friendly FLEX role if he does.

Underhill believes RB Travis Etienne’s skillset “is exactly what the Saints need if inside zone and outside zone are going to remain the base.” That said, the Saints are also excited about Etienne’s versatility. Paganetti praised his intelligence, pass protection, route running ability and added that Etienne is more than just a one-cut runner. If RB Alvin Kamara, 30, remains with the team, Underhill believes Etienne’s presence allows the team to use Kamara selectively, rather than relying on him all game long. Underhill adds that the Saints’ play-action passing game was very efficient in 13 personnel, albeit via a small sample size. The front office added multiple tight ends this offseason and the coaching staff wants the running game “to feed the passing game,” which could mean more runs out of three-tight end sets. Etienne is looking like an RB2 with RB1 upside in an ascending offense.

Kamara showed up for practice while his 2026 contract situation is very much in flux. Several reports over the past couple weeks have suggested Kamara, entering his age-31 season, won’t return to the Saints for the 2026 season after the team signed Travis Etienne during free agency. Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said in mid-May that he’s “trying to see” how Kamara might fit on the team’s roster. Kamara carries a $10.4 million cap hit coming into the 2026 season if the Saints keep him on the team in the coming weeks. Kamara, who had 471 rushing yards over 11 games last season, ranked 32nd out of 75 qualifying running backs in missed tackles forced per carry. He ranked 70th in yards after contact per carry.

Fowler adds that “there is some interest in potentially coming back there,” and suggests the two sides might be able to agree to a revised deal. Fowler’s commentary — SportsCenter bits are quick and sometimes rushed — was a bit convoluted to follow. New Orleans Football’s Nick Underhill points out that Fowler may have misinterpreted Kamara’s current contract numbers as well. Regardless, we believe Fowler is saying that Kamara would like to remain a Saint, but the team has not been interested in the suggested resolutions coming from Kamara’s camp. Per Over The Cap, the team would save only $376,000 by releasing him after June 1. Beat reporters have recently opined that releasing Kamara would create the need for outside help at the RB2 spot. Retaining Kamara on a revised deal could benefit both sides.

For the time being, Kamara remains a Saint. It is entirely unclear how long that will remain the case. Early last week, general manager Mickey Loomis said the team is trying to figure out Kamara’s fit on the roster. A few days later, New Orleans Football’s Mike Triplett said he thinks the team would “go shopping” for an RB2 candidate if Kamara leaves the team via trade or release. If that’s the case, it suggests the Saints still see a talent gap between Kamara and his backups. Perhaps, keeping Kamara in New Orleans ends up making sense for both sides.