Is Alvin Kamara the best Running Back in the NFL?

[SBLIII]

I have watched every game from his so far in his NFL career and I'm amazed what he can do and even more amazed that he was a 3rd round pick. I don't see another RB in the NFL with his ability.

 

He is leading the NFL in yards per touch again after setting an all-time record last year with 7.5 ypt.

[stl4life07]

The answer is no. The reason why is how can he be the best "running back" and the Saints are struggling running the football? 

Now is he a great receiving back? Yes. Can he give you something in the running game? Yes. He isnt better than Gurley or Bell. Those guys can get 20+ carries leading the team in just pounding the ball down the opponents throats and then still be great in the receiving game. What the Saints have shown me so far is they badly miss Ingram. If Kamara was the best back, they wouldnt miss Ingram like they do. The Saints dont have a running game right now and that is forcing Brees to throw the ball a ton of times rather than lean on the running game when its clear the Saints defense is struggling badly. So again Kamara is a really good back. He is a great receiving back, but he isnt the best running back. 

[Bobikus]

Yards per touch for RBs is like the most misleading stat too.

[SmittyBacall]

He's on that tier.

[RandyMossIsBoss]

He's up there, but I'd still take proven bell cows like Gurley, Zeke and Bell over him. Could chalk that to personal preference, as I definitely like a big back I can feed 20+ times when we're talking the top backs that we want to pay top money. We've never seen something quite like him catching out of the backfield though, he is looking to be a mold breaker at the position.

There are a clear top 6 talents at the RB spot right now in my eyes, those 4 and then Saquan and DJ as well. Of all those guys, Kamara is probably the most explosive.

 

 

24 minutes ago, stl4life07 said:

The answer is no. The reason why is how can he be the best "running back" and the Saints are struggling running the football? 

Because ~80% of the run game is based on run blocking? Surely you would know that after Gurley posted an all time poor 3.2 Y/C a few years ago.

[Jlowe22]

No, he's not the best.  He's at the top though.  

[Jakuvious]

1 hour ago, SBLIII said:

I have watched every game from his so far in his NFL career and I'm amazed what he can do and even more amazed that he was a 3rd round pick. I don't see another RB in the NFL with his ability.

 

He is leading the NFL in yards per touch again after setting an all-time record last year with 7.5 ypt.

But...none of that is true?

6 RBs have a higher YPT than him this year. Along with any WR with enough touches to qualify.

Kamara actually had 7.7 YPT last year.

And that wasn't really a record, anyway. It didn't even lead the league last year for RBs since Chris Thompson had 7.8. It's one of those records where you have to set some qualifiers for it to work. It was the highest yards per touch, for a RB, post-merger, with over 200 touches. Otherwise you get a ton of WRs and TEs, pre-merger guys like Doak Walker and Beattie Feathers, and lower volume guys like Chris Thompson or Keither Byars or Ronnie Harmon, with better YPT.

And let's be real, all YPT really is is a measurement of catches versus rush attempts for RBs. It's why historically that stat has been led by guys like Sproles, Woodhead, Kevin Faulk, Chris Thompson, Charles Sims, etc. Great player, but I hate that stat.

[stl4life07]

54 minutes ago, RandyMossIsBoss said:

He's up there, but I'd still take proven bell cows like Gurley, Zeke and Bell over him. Could chalk that to personal preference, as I definitely like a big back I can feed 20+ times when we're talking the top backs that we want to pay top money. We've never seen something quite like him catching out of the backfield though, he is looking to be a mold breaker at the position.

There are a clear top 6 talents at the RB spot right now in my eyes, those 4 and then Saquan and DJ as well. Of all those guys, Kamara is probably the most explosive.

 

 

Because ~80% of the run game is based on run blocking? Surely you would know that after Gurley posted an all time poor 3.2 Y/C a few years ago.

I think you know what I mean. I cant say Kamara is the best back when the Saints are struggling to run the ball and miss Ingram. Like if Kamara is the best back in foorball wouldnt there be no need for Ingram? I actually talked to my friend yesterday and told him that the way the Saints are struggling to run the ball, Ingram needs to use that as leverage during the offseason to get a good deal to stay with the Saints. Now I know thats not going to happen where the Saints give Ingram a big deal but the point I was trying to make was the Saints clearly miss Ingram. That speaks volumes to say Kamara isnt the best back in the NFL. 

[GSUeagles14]

not even close. he gets an insane amount of opportunity in the pass game and hes very good at it. CMC isnt in that group either fyi. IMO hes beyond the top tier group of Bell, Gurley, maybe Johnson if they figure out how to use him again and prob a half step behind gordon/zeke.

[SBLIII]

19 minutes ago, Jakuvious said:

But...none of that is true?

6 RBs have a higher YPT than him this year. Along with any WR with enough touches to qualify.

Kamara actually had 7.7 YPT last year.

And that wasn't really a record, anyway. It didn't even lead the league last year for RBs since Chris Thompson had 7.8. It's one of those records where you have to set some qualifiers for it to work. It was the highest yards per touch, for a RB, post-merger, with over 200 touches. Otherwise you get a ton of WRs and TEs, pre-merger guys like Doak Walker and Beattie Feathers, and lower volume guys like Chris Thompson or Keither Byars or Ronnie Harmon, with better YPT.

And let's be real, all YPT really is is a measurement of catches versus rush attempts for RBs. It's why historically that stat has been led by guys like Sproles, Woodhead, Kevin Faulk, Chris Thompson, Charles Sims, etc. Great player, but I hate that stat.

Thanks I stand corrected.

[El Ramster]

Wtf? He has 141 Rush Yards,  On 3.8...

Hell freaking no and the Saints also boast a top 3 Oline. If anything shows how overrated he’s become. Oh with more touches he’ll increase his YPC?? nah he’s not Jamal Charles... He’s not even a top 5 Running back with those low numbers. Saints need Ingram

much more than y’all think. 

 

[Danger]

He's the best all purpose back, but not the best runningback by any means.

[tyler735]

He is certainly in the conversation, as he has been incredible again to start the season. Without him, my Saints would probably be sitting at 0-3 to start the season. What sets him apart is his versatility. Right now teams have been doing a good job shutting down running lanes against the Saints. When Kamara has a hole, he almost always takes advantage and nets a positive play. Heck, even when there isn't a hole to run through, he still will sometimes make an incredible play that few in the league can replicate to turn it into a positive play.

A couple examples of what he can do that few others in the league can do are at 1:24, and 2:29 in this video:

 

It is funny watching the box score scouts in here though stating that "Kamara has a low YPC, so how can he be in the conversation", and the "Saints miss Ingram more than we thought". Neither of those statements are particularly true. Kamara is averaging 3.8 ypc, which isn't great, but if we take a look at our next leading rusher Mike Gillislee, he is averaging 2.6 ypc. Also if we are using ypc without context, what happened to Todd Gurley 2 years ago (3.2 ypc), and this year (4.1 ypc)? In other words, it is a silly argument to cite ypc without any further context. As for the missing Ingram comments, sure I'd love to have him back as he is certainly much better than Mike Gillislee, but I highly doubt he fixes the non-existent running lanes that have been there for much of the season so far for my Saints. The fact that Kamara is still 143 yards of offense per game despite having hardly any running lanes, just shows how big of a weapon he is due to his versatility. The guy is on pace for nearly 2,300 yards of offense and 16 touchdowns, but hey his YPC is a bit low, so he must not be that great lol. 

[GSUeagles14]

31 minutes ago, tyler735 said:

He is certainly in the conversation, as he has been incredible again to start the season. Without him, my Saints would probably be sitting at 0-3 to start the season. What sets him apart is his versatility. Right now teams have been doing a good job shutting down running lanes against the Saints. When Kamara has a hole, he almost always takes advantage and nets a positive play. Heck, even when there isn't a hole to run through, he still will sometimes make an incredible play that few in the league can replicate to turn it into a positive play.

A couple examples of what he can do that few others in the league can do are at 1:24, and 2:29 in this video:

 

It is funny watching the box score scouts in here though stating that "Kamara has a low YPC, so how can he be in the conversation", and the "Saints miss Ingram more than we thought". Neither of those statements are particularly true. Kamara is averaging 3.8 ypc, which isn't great, but if we take a look at our next leading rusher Mike Gillislee, he is averaging 2.6 ypc. Also if we are using ypc without context, what happened to Todd Gurley 2 years ago (3.2 ypc), and this year (4.1 ypc)? In other words, it is a silly argument to cite ypc without any further context. As for the missing Ingram comments, sure I'd love to have him back as he is certainly much better than Mike Gillislee, but I highly doubt he fixes the non-existent running lanes that have been there for much of the season so far for my Saints. The fact that Kamara is still 143 yards of offense per game despite having hardly any running lanes, just shows how big of a weapon he is due to his versatility. The guy is on pace for nearly 2,300 yards of offense and 16 touchdowns, but hey his YPC is a bit low, so he must not be that great lol. 

typical homer response. Kamara is getting insane amount of pass targets, thats where the vast majority of his yards are coming from. any reasonable person saw the crash coming with his running. Hes a very good player, hes not an elite runner, he saw one of the lowest %s of stacked boxes last year and now that teams are playing the run hes getting shut down. Hes a rich mans chris thompson, which is very valuable but not an elite, top 3 RB. 

[tyler735]

2 minutes ago, GSUeagles14 said:

typical homer response. Kamara is getting insane amount of pass targets, thats where the vast majority of his yards are coming from. any reasonable person saw the crash coming with his running. Hes a very good player, hes not an elite runner, he saw one of the lowest %s of stacked boxes last year and now that teams are playing the run hes getting shut down. Hes a rich mans chris thompson, which is very valuable but not an elite, top 3 RB. 

So being on pace for 2,300 or so yards of offense, and 16 touchdowns while following up an All-Pro selection in his rookie year is a homer response? Neat.