The New Orleans Saints’ decision to sign Travis Etienne Jr to a four-year, $52 million contract in March transformed the franchise’s running back room into one of, if not the most fascinating, in the league.
It goes without saying that Alvin Kamara is a capable and battle-tested RB with plenty of juice left in the tank. That said, the 30-year-old five-time Pro Bowler’s uninspiring 2025-26 campaign left much to be desired (he recorded a career low 471 rushing yards and 186 receiving yards).
If the Saints move on from Kamara before the start of the new season, ESPN’s Dan Graziano believes the Green Bay Packers and Cincinnati Bengals could be possible suitors.
“The Saints' beloved veteran turns 31 in July and posted career lows in touches (164) and scrimmage yards (657) in 2025,” Graziano wrote last Thursday. “New Orleans doled out big money to TravisEtienne Jr. in free agency and has a crowded RB room that also includes Kendre Miller, Audric Estime, and Ty Chandler.”
“Kamara has one year left on his contract, which has been amended so many times it's difficult to truly assess the size of the dead money burden New Orleans will take on whenever he's gone.”
“It's hard to see a team offering too much for Kamara at this point in his career. But if he lands in the right kind of backfield and the right kind of role, he could have a chance to go out with a bang. Maybe a place such as Cincinnati or Green Bay has a way to use him to help the offense.”
Graziano couldn’t have picked two better offseason landing spots for Kamara, as the Josh Jacobs fiasco (arrest) and Bengals’ need for a dependable complementary RB for Chase Brown make the former Offensive Rookie of the Year a high-level trade target for both franchises.
Of course, the Saints could opt to keep Kamara in the fold and employ a one-two punch with the Tennessee product and Etienne, which may be the most likely option at this stage of the offseason.
Still, there’s no reason to eliminate the possibility of Kamara finding himself on the Packers or Bengals before it’s all said and done.
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