Saints “Extremely Close” To Extension For Alvin Kamara

According to Adam Schefter, the Saints and RB Alvin Kamara are “extremely close” on a lucrative extension to keep him in New Orleans. 

Talks flared up last week and there was a period of time where Kamara was on the trading block.

However, Schefter indicates that’s in the past and both sides expect Kamara to be a Saint for a long time. 

Kamara returned to practice last week after rumors of a holdout amidst frustration from both sides about the state of talks. The Saints were comfortable with a deal similar to what Bengals RB Joe Mixon and Titans RB Derrick Henry signed at about $12 million per year. 

However, Kamara sees himself as closer to Panthers RB Christian McCaffrey and wanted a contract that looked more like the $16 million per year deal Carolina gave their star. 

The Saints were frustrated given they don’t use Kamara as much as the Panthers use McCaffrey, so to make a point they started exploring trades, reportedly asking for a first-round pick. 

However, cooler heads have prevailed and it appears the two sides are gaining traction. They still have some time before the start of the season on Sunday to get this deal finalized. 

Kamara, 25, is a former third-round pick of the Saints back in 2017. Kamara is in the final year of his four-year, $3.85 million contract and stands to make a base salary of $977,500 for the 2020 season. 

Kamara is in line to be an unrestricted free agent in 2021. 

In 2019, Kamara appeared in 14 games for the Saints and rushed for 797 yards on 171 carries (4.7 YPC) to go along with 81 receptions for 533 yards receiving and six total touchdowns.

We have him included in our Top 50 – 2021 Free Agents list.