Saints running back room ranked 22nd by PFF

Pro Football Focus’ Trevor Sikkema released his running back unit rankings for 2024 on Wednesday placing the New Orleans Saints room 22nd.

The Saints put up 1,742 yards on the ground in 2024, ranking 21st in the NFL. The running back room only contributed 1,226 yards with quarterback Taysom Hill producing the second-most rushing yards on the team with 401. Alvin Kamara led the Saints with an underwhelming 694 yards on 3.9 yards a carry. Veteran Jamaal Williams added 306 yards on the ground with 2.9 yards a carry while rookie Kendre Miller only added 156 yards on 3.8 yards a carry.

Williams and Miller missed significant time during the season due to injury with Williams only appearing in 13 games and Miller only seeing eight. Kamara also missed four games beginning with a three-game suspension to start the season.

Sikkema explains his ranking by mentioning Kamara’s age and the team's lack of depth behind him. Jamaal Williams had a league-leading 17 touchdowns in 2022 before his lackluster 1 touchdown in 2023 that he gained on New Orleans' last offensive play of the season. Kendre Miller was gaining hype during training camp as Kamara was actively a mentor for the young running back focusing on his versatility. Miller would end the season on a high note with a promising game logging 73 yards and a touchdown on 5.6 yards a carry, but his 2023 season was very underwhelming.

Newly signed offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak was brought in during the offseason to help revamp the way the Saints' offense operates starting with the run game. The offensive line struggled heavily in 2023 leading to offensive line coach Doug Marrone being replaced with John Benton. The Saints used their first-line draft pick on tackle Taliese Fuaga who excels as a run blocker and will be a day-one starter at left tackle. Kubiak is working to bring the new-age Shannahan-style offense to New Orleans bringing more motion before the snap and play action. The offense started the year slow and only picked it up towards the final quarter of the season when former offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael finally added these factors to the offense.

The new offense will control each running back’s carries creating fresh legs for each back and better-quality chances. Kamara will get a load taken off and better looks while Miller and Williams will get more opportunities to make plays. The Saints have had talented running back rooms in the past with shared snaps that have benefited both the players and the team proving to be pivotal to a successful offense.

PFF ranking the Saints' running back as a bottom 10 unit ahead of the 2024 season is not shocking and can very well continue to be true based on their 2023 product. But many factors contributed to the lack of a run game during last season that will change in 2024 which can see New Orleans’ rushing attack take over.

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