METAIRIE, La. – Alvin Kamara appears to be making a late push for a contract extension.
The New Orleans Saints running back has been out of training camp since Friday, and it is believed to be related to a contract, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Saints coach Sean Payton declined to elaborate on the reason for players’ absences in recent days as teams are not required to release injury reports during camp.
Kamara is expected to earn $ 2.133 million in the final year of his rookie contract. He showed up for the start of training camp and competed for the first few weeks, insisting at the time that he was not focused on his contract.
The running back said he even told his agent, “Don’t tell me anything about a contract until it’s something where it’s going or there’s something I need to know. “
“It will happen when it does,” Kamara said at the time. “It was never anything … like I didn’t walk in [to the NFL] thinking about like, “Ooh, I can’t wait” to get a contract. “It’s like, ‘I’m playing, and when it comes it’s going to be well deserved and it’s going to be the perfect timing for that.’ It’s just not something that’s at the forefront of my day. . It’s not something I wake up thinking about. “
It’s unclear what has changed – and whether Kamara’s absence means both sides are closing in on an extension or moving away.
By holding on, Kamara could risk losing an accumulated season, meaning he would become a restricted free agent after that season instead of not being restricted.
According to the collective agreement, a player under contract would lose an accumulated season if he did not show up for training camp on the mandatory declaration date or if “the player subsequently failed to perform his contractual services for the club for a period of time. significant period of time. . “
The Saints could also fine Kamara up to $ 40,000 per day, although those fines are not mandatory since Kamara is still on his rookie contract.
None of these things would be a problem, however, if the Saints and Kamara were able to strike a new deal.
Kamara, 25, will likely be looking for a deal worth somewhere between the new deals signed during the offseason by fellow running backs Christian McCaffrey ($ 16 million a year) and Derrick Henry ($ 12.5 million), although that this leaves a fairly wide margin in between.
Kamara has been neck and neck with McCaffrey as the league’s two top young double-threat running backs – starting in 2017, when he beat McCaffrey for the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award as a third draft. tower. choose from Tennessee.
Kamara had 728 rushing yards, 826 receiving yards and 14 total touchdowns that year. His number rose to 883 rushing yards, 709 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns in 2018.
However, last year Kamara was hampered by knee and ankle injuries that forced him to miss two games and play “on one leg” for the past three months once he returned. He finished with 797 rushing yards, 533 career low yards and six career low touchdowns.
Kamara said he is in good health now, and coaches praised him for looking like himself at the start of camp.
The Saints have around $ 7.5 million in salary cap space this year, but they will face daunting salary caps next year if the league’s cap drops significantly due to the loss of earnings in 2020.
The NFL’s cap for 2021 could drop as low as $ 175 million per team, from $ 198.2 million per team in 2020.
The Saints rank second in the NFL with $ 246.6 million in salary cap commitments for 2021, according to ESPN Stats & Information. And Saints starters like cornerback Marshon Lattimore, offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk and linebacker Demario Davis are nearing end of their contracts.
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