The question of whether Alvin Kamara will play has dominated the past few weeks for the New Orleans Saints, but with other absences making headlines this week, Kamara has flown somewhat under the radar.
Let’s take a look at the latest updates on Kamara’s status and how his injury is impacting fantasy football.
Will Alvin Kamara play on Sunday?
Once again, Kamara was restricted all week and carried a questionable label into the weekend. The fact that he hadn’t garnered much attention from the media over in London seemed like a positive sign. That suggested he’d likely be on the field this week, but that shouldn’t be the case.
Corresponding Stacey Dales of the NFL Network, head coach Dennis Allen confirmed that Kamara will miss the Saints game in London. Kamara was then announced among the New Orleans inactives.
On Saturday afternoon, ESPN’s Field Yates reported that the Saints had lifted RB Latavius Murray from the practice team for Sunday’s game. This turned out to be a precursor to New Orleans ruling out Kamara for Week 4
Can Fantasy Managers Trust Mark Ingram With Kamara Out?
With Kamara out, Mark Ingram should be the starting RB for the Saints. He saw the most touches when Kamara missed Week 2 but didn’t fully dominate the backfield. However, we should see both Murray and D’Wayne Washington getting touches this week.
The matchup for the Saints is extremely enticing this week. The Vikings have conceded opposing running backs an average of 24.6 fantasy points per game in half PPR formats. That makes them the third-best matchup in the league for defenders. In addition, they allowed more than 25 fantasy points for the position in two of the first three weeks.
The problem for Ingram’s fantasy value is whether he sees enough touches to be a 12-team league starter. With Kamara off the field, Ingram almost becomes a 14-team league flex option by default.
The last time Kamara was out, Ingram only managed 10 rushing attempts. However, he was quite effective at 58 yards on those carries. In his first three weeks, he has 98 yards on 19 rush attempts and four yards on three goals.