RB Alvin Kamara’s Saints Future Unclear

Since then, questions have been raised about the future of Alvin Kamara. The nine-year veteran has spent his entire career with New Orleans, but in the immediate aftermath of Etienne’s arrival Kamara became the subject of trade interest from outside teams.

No movement on that front has taken place, and head coach Kellen Moore said at the league meeting (via Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football) he “plans” on having Etienne and Kamara in the backfield for 2026. Nevertheless, Underhill deems this situation one worth watching closely, as he reports no firm decisions have been made yet with respect to Kamara’s future.

The 30-year-old’s Saints tenure has been a question mark in the past. Kamara made it known his preference was to remain in place last year, but the possibility of a trade during the 2026 offseason has been raised. April’s draft may loom as an opportunity for New Orleans to select Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love if he remains on the board at No. 8, though the Etienne signing obviously lessens the chances of that taking place.

Kamara is due $11.5MM in 2026, the final year of his contract. The five-time Pro Bowler is set to carry a $10.45MM cap hit before seeing his pact void on the last day of the 2026 league year. Those could prove to be reasonable figures if Kamara manages to return to full health and his previous form. After consistently topping 1,100 scrimmage yards during each of his first eight seasons, the former third-rounder was limited to 11 games in 2025 due to an MCL sprain. He delivered by far the least productive year of his career as a result.

Improving in the ground game was understandably identified as a goal for the Saints, leading to the Etienne investment. The ex-Jaguar will be counted on to carry a heavy workload upon arrival, and at the age of 27 he will be viewed as an RB1 option for years to come. Kamara may well find himself splitting backfield reps in Year 10, but it remains to be seen if he will be doing so in New Orleans.