The New Orleans Saints lost Travis Etienne Jr. (hamstring) to IR before last week’s game, so he’ll miss at least three more weeks before he’s eligible to return. Without him, Alvin Kamara stepped up into a much larger role and was effective in the team’s Week 4 defeat. Kamara then dealt with an injury this week, and is officially listed as questionable, but if he’s active on Sunday, is he a must-start as the Saints host the Vikings?
Let’s dive in and examine the latest on Kamara’s injury and what to expect from him in Week 5.
Alvin Kamara Start or Sit Advice for Week 5
Alvin Kamara missed Week 1 with an injury, but has been heavily involved since his Week 2 return. He had exactly nine carries in Week 2 and Week 3, and he actually only had seven carries in Week 4 with Etienne out. In that Week 4 matchup with the Falcons, Kamara played a season-high 38% of snaps and earned 22.8 FPTS. He only had seven carries, yet racked up 23 rushing yards while also adding five catches for 35 yards. He took two of his seven carries for touchdowns, which is how he ended up with so much fantasy production.
Kamara did have to briefly leave the game against the Falcons after he was bent backwards on a tackle, but was able to return. His back issue continued to be a problem this week, though. He missed practice on Wednesday and was limited on Thursday. He earned a questionable tag for Sunday’s game against the Vikings, but he seems to be trending towards being available.
The matchup with the Vikings is a very tough one, though, since they have allowed the fewest fantasy points in the NFL to RBs this season. They did give up their first touchdown to an RB last week, with Ollie Gordon II getting 100 yards and a score against them, but they are still averaging only 76.8 rushing yards and 22.8 receiving yards allowed per game to the position.
Kamara’s receiving work and touchdown potential is enough to still keep him on the fringes of starter status despite the matchup. He’s a touchdown-dependent FLEX play in a matchup where his opponent doesn’t give up many touchdowns. He’s definitely not “must-start” if he plays through the injury, even though he is still startable if you’re in a roster squeeze.
If Kamara is out, Kendre Miller and CJ Donaldson would likely share the work, and each would bring interesting value potential as long-shot plays.
If Kamara plays, he’ll be a boom-or-bust value option at $5,400 in DFS contests like the NFL $2.75M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st] on DraftKings. Kendre Miller at $4,900 and CJ Donaldson at $4,400 are more extreme value options if Kamara is out, but it’s hard to count on any of them as a “safe” play based on the tough matchup and likely timeshare. Kamara is clearly the top option while Etienne is out, but the injury makes him high-risk.
