The Saints have played spoiler the last two weeks by knocking off the Buccaneers and the Panthers, and this week they have a favorable matchup against the Jets. The backfield has fantasy potential, but it’s a little murky due to injuries to top running backs Alvin Kamara (knee/ankle) and Devin Neal (hamstring). Audric Estime and Evan Hull could step up, but which option has more value in your lineups?
Let’s take a look at how the Saints backfield could look this week.
Alvin Kamara and Devin Neal Injury Updates
Kamara has missed the last three games for the Saints after leaving Week 12 with an MCL sprain. He has not returned to practice at all since the injury, and even before that, he was struggling to gain much value with the Saints’ underwhelming offense. An ankle injury also seemed to be slowing him down.
Rookie Devin Neal had taken over as Kamara’s backup after Kendre Miller’s season-ending injury, so when Kamara went down, Neal stepped in as the primary running back. He played 82% of snaps in Week 13 and 71% of snaps in Week 14, before leaving early in Week 15 with a hamstring injury.
Neal scored a four-yard touchdown on his final play before exiting and finished with 28 rushing yards on seven carries, along with one catch for four yards.
The team and coach Kellen Moore haven’t issued any update on Neal’s status since the injury, but he’ll be another key name to watch for on the practice report as the week’s workouts begin.
Is it Audric Estime’s Time?
Estime played 25 snaps (36%) on Sunday against the Panthers and finished with three carries for 11 yards to go with three catches for 39 yards. His biggest play came early on the drive that resulted in the game-winning field goal.
His production and his snap share were both slightly more than Evan Hull’s, and Estime would probably be the favorite for more of the work this week if Neal and Kamara are both ruled out.
Estime was originally a fifth-round pick of the Broncos in the 2024 NFL Draft, and he has appeared in four games for the Saints. He only has six carries on the season, so he doesn’t have a long track record, but he would likely be the primary option.
Evan Hull Fantasy Outlook
Hull played 22 snaps (32%) and had four carries for 12 yards. He did not see a target and seemed to work mostly on early downs, while Estime rotated in on passing plays, including the late-game drive.
Hull was a fifth-round pick for the Colts in the 2023 NFL Draft, and he played just a single game for the Colts in 2023 and 2024, with one carry combined for just one yard in those two seasons. He has played three games this year for the Saints, taking 10 carries for 31 yards.
Hull could end up with a few more carries than Estime if Neal and Kamara are out, but Estime’s receiving work gives him a higher fantasy ceiling. If either back gets goal-line work and breaks into the end zone, that could also be the deciding factor in who ends up being the better play.
The Bottom Line
In the last five games, the Jets have allowed an average of 114 rushing yards and 31.4 receiving yards to opposing running backs, while giving up 14 running-back touchdowns in those five games. The Jaguars running backs scored four receiving touchdowns against New York last week, which could mean Estime finds room to work this week.
In season-long leagues, Estime could have FLEX potential if he gets the full role in such a juicy matchup. He’ll be high-risk, but he definitely has enough upside to be on the radar in deep leagues if he’s in line for most of the work.
In DFS contests on DraftKings, like the NFL $2.25M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st], Estime is $5,000, while Hull is even cheaper at $4,500. In Kamara and Neal don’t play, Estime would be one of the best values on the board this week, and Hull would also have touchdown-dependent upside as a value play if you’re looking to spend up in other spots.
