‘Guys will follow behind him‘ – Alvin Kamara runs into pantheon of New Orleans legends as last man standing of all-world 2017 draft class
Alvin Kamara is the New Orleans Saints offense and now he has the status to go with the numbers.
After a week where Kamara himself spoke of a culture change and was named a team captain - he got the 12 yards he needed to become the Saints all-time leading rusher, and plenty more
More importantly, the Saints snapped a seven-game losing streak
Roared onto the field by an adoring crowd pregame, Kamara delivered in the opening minutes.
In the team’s first game since the firing of Dennis Allen, Kamara got the yards inside the first eight minutes of the opening quarter against NFC South rivals and division leaders Atlanta.
He overtakes Mark Ingram, who had 6,500 yards in 123 games across two spells with the team. Kamara has done it in 12 games fewer and has eight more rushing touchdowns (60), another list he stands on top of.
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Things have been tough for the Saints, who began the season with two huge victories but entered Week 10 on the back of an horrendous run.
Kamara has been needed to carry the offense as injuries have wiped out receiver after receiver. Coming into the game, the 29-year-old led the team in rushing with 660 yards, and with 367 yards was second on the receiving list.
He finished Sunday's game with 109 yards of total offense, 55 of them ground as the Saints won 20-17 on a dramatic night in the Caesers Superdome.
He finished narrowly short of the dream finish, dropping a pass from Derek Carr that would have iced the game - instead Tyrann Mathieu's pick got the job done.
"The dumbest thing I ever done," Kamara said afterward, but the praise rained down on a player the team now expect to become a leader.
Taken by the Saints with the 67th pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, Kamara has continually delivered - as have most of that 2017 class.
But unlike most of them, the running back is still in New Orleans and can be the leader the team need for a new era, whether under interim coach Darren Rizzi, or a new HC in the offseason.
“He is really important. He definitely was not bought into the last regime. I think buying into this one would go a long way towards just kind of healing it a little bit,” he told talkSPORT.
“People follow behind him. But the way he's played, I think he's playing as well as he has since 2020. He doesn't look like a 29-year-old running back right now. So I feel good about the contract.
Kamara and Lattimore were named Offensive and Defensive Rookie's of the Year in 2017, the first of four successive seasons in the playoffs.
The closest the team came to the Super Bowl was an NFC Championship defeat in 2018.
The others have gone, but Kamara remains, and while there is Kamara there is hope.
"He acted like a captain, practised like a captain so I made him a captain," Rizzi told the media after victory over the Falcons - and his role going forward will only grow.
The Saints came into Week 10 at 2-7 and realistically needing at least seven wins from their final eight games to get to the post season and the dream of a home Super Bowl in February.
It's one win, but a big win, and a win that was inspired by their record breaker - the 3rd round pick from Tennessee who now holds seven team records, and was a proud man in the press conference.
"This one is special," he beamed.
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New Orleans is hosting the Super Bowl for a record-equalling 11th time on February 9, 2025