Alvin Kamara, Mark Ingram rejoice over New Orleans Saints trade
Safe to say, New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara is excited to be reunited with Mark Ingram after the Saints acquired the Alabama product from the Texans on Wednesday.
Ingram, 31, started his career in New Orleans and played eight seasons with the organization from 2011-2018. The Alabama product and Kamara shared just two season together as backfield mates, but developed a kinship as Ingram helped guide Kamara through his first two seasons in the league.
In 2017, Ingram and Kamara made history as the first running backs on the same team to both surpass 1,500 yards from scrimmage in the same season. Ingram put up 1,124 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns and added 416 rushing yards. Kamara won the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award, rushing for 728 yards and eight touchdowns and adding 826 yards and five touchdowns as a receiver.
In 2018, Ingram rushed for 645 yards and six touchdowns, along with 170 receiving yards and one touchdown. Kamara rushed for 883 yards and 14 touchdowns along with 709 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
In their time together, the two often held joint postgame press conferences. When Ingram became a free agent after the 2019 season and signed with the Baltimore Ravens, Kamara shared a heartfelt message via Instagram calling him “my brother for life.”
“I hope y’all don’t think gon stop!! My brother for life,” Kamara wrote in the social media post. “I’m not een talkin bout football. Dude kicked game to me bout how to stand tall through the bull and how to stay grounded when you on top of the world. Never once complained. Poured everything he had into me and for that I’m forever grateful. Probably the smoothest first 2 years an NFL player has ever had and I owe a lot of it to you brother. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Now, the two are back together in New Orleans.
This season, the Saints are sitting at 4-2 and have gotten little going offensively beyond Kamara. The second-leading rusher behind Kamara, who has garnered 419 yards on the ground, is quarterback Jameis Winston, with just 126 yards in six games. Through the air, Kamara is the Saints’ second-leading reciever, trailing only Marquez Callaway, with 241 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Mark Ingram gives the Saints a physical downhill runner in short-yardage situations and a formidable compliment in the backfield beside Kamara. In his 11-year career, Ingram has rushed for 7,618 yards and 63 touchdowns along with 1,919 yards receiving and 10 touchdowns through the air. In his career, Ingram has been selected to three Pro Bowls.