New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara is expected to be sidelined for at least the next month due to a sprained MCL, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Kamara, 31, will play for the Saints in 2026 on a reworked contract that will pay him a base salary of $6 million this season with a chance to make up to $8.5 million with incentives.
Kamara had been set to make up to $11.5 million in base salary this season, although the Saints renegotiated his contract for salary cap purposes in early March. In addition, $3 million of that salary became guaranteed last year.
In March, the Saints signed former Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. to a four-year deal worth more than $12 million per year in the first three years of the deal. Etienne's and Kamara's contracts made the running back position expensive in both cash value and cap space for the Saints, with $21 million in cap space devoted to the team's seven running backs -- the most in the NFL before Kamara's revised deal.
Kamara's future was a point of speculation before Etienne's signing and questions about whether the Saints would pay both running backs increased after the new addition. Kamara said during OTAs that he was excited to team up with Etienne after having success playing with Mark Ingram and Latavius Murray earlier in his career.
Kamara's age has been one reason for the speculation, but he also is coming off a season in which he had career lows in rushing yards (471), receiving yards (186) and total touchdowns (one). He finished the past two seasons with injuries.
The Saints running back group is currently shorthanded, as Audric Estime is also out after being injured in Saturday's game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Kendre Miller and Devin Neal returned to practice on Tuesday after being out since early August with injuries.
