The Saints' main weapon on offense, for years now, has been running back Alvin Kamara. But there are several reasons as to why the team could choose to move on from him this offseason.
For starters, the Saints currently sit at nearly $84 million in the hole toward the salary cap this offseason, the worst in the league. It's going to be hard for the team to do much with no room to work with.
Naturally, the team needs to look at some contracts it can get off the books and one of those happens to be that of Kamara, who is scheduled to count $18.7 million against the cap in 2024. However, the team could choose to cut him with a post-June 1 release date, a move that would save the team $11.7 million against the cap, as suggested here by Matt Okada of NFL.com.
Kamara did have career-low numbers in carries and rushing yards in 2023, but what Okada fails to mention is that the three-game suspension he had to begin the season had a lot to do with that.
If he becomes available, the Broncos need to be in on him. Oftentimes, you will see things written in relation to "team should go after player X" following a release and those are always fun scenarios to discuss. In this case, it is common sense.
The Broncos need help at the running back spot and Kamara is obviously a player that spent many years with Sean Payton. Payton has shown a propensity to bring players who were once in New Orleans over to Denver and no player would be bigger than Kamara, one of the league's most dynamic running backs.
The Broncos have Javonte Williams, Samaje Perine and Jaleel McLaughlin at the running back spot. Kamara would be a pretty large upgrade over all of those players.
Kamara has already spent seven seasons in the league and he will be 29 years old in July. But there should still be some tread on his tires as a runner but more importantly, as a receiver. That is where Kamara impacts the game the most.
Regardless of who the Broncos have at quarterback to begin the 2024 season, how nice would it be to have Kamara with him in the backfield? Kamara, arguably the best receiving running back in the league, would give the offense a massive boost.
All of the Broncos' running backs had respectable receiving numbers in 2023. Perine caught 50 passes, Williams had 47 and McLaughlin caught 31. Kamara, who missed the first three games, had 75 receptions. The only running back in the league who had more was Breece Hall.
Kamara would be a great addition to the Broncos' roster if the two sides could agree on money. If the Saints make the move to dump him to create some cap space, you can bet Payton will be looking to work a deal.