Several times throughout the leadup to the 2025 season, New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore said he thought every one of his running backs had a legitimate case for the 53-man active roster — which led to some difficult choices.
The Saints made one of those during the first wave of roster cuts Monday morning, releasing veteran Cam Akers.
"Difficult one, because he's a really good running back in this league," Moore said.
A former second-round pick out of Florida State, Akers joined the team after a successful tryout this summer. But he struggled to separate himself from a pack that included Kendre Miller, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Velus Jones and rookie Devin Neal.
The Clinton, Mississippi native carried the ball eight times for 16 yards in three preseason games, adding four catches for 15 yards.
Miller, in particular, has seemed to secure a spot as Alvin Kamara's primary backup. He led the Saints with 51 rushing yards this preseason, many of which were hard-fought yards.
"Kendre did a phenomenal job this entire offseason," Moore said. "... We've got a number of other guys that we feel like can provide some roles, so we'll finalize the rest of this running back group, but we feel like we're going to have a really competitive group there."