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What can Alvin Kamara and the New Orleans Saints learn from the still-developing market for running backs? With Kamara now eligible to sign a long-term contract extension, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he considers a training camp holdout, much like wide receiver Michael Thomas did last year during negotiations for a new deal.
But recent history may suggest that isn’t the way to go. Just ask former Los Angeles Chargers running back Melvin Gordon, who held out extensively last season when talks broke down with the Chargers front office. Gordon ended up leaving in free agency for just $13.5 million in guarantees from the Denver Broncos, a huge drop-off from what he had hoped to earn in L.A.
But look to the other end of the spectrum, with the cross-town Rams. They paid out a league-best contract extension to Todd Gurley, the face of their franchise, but cut him to avoid paying a big roster bonus. The Georgia Bulldogs star, just 25 years old, ended up returning to play for the Atlanta Falcons on a one-year, $5 million deal.
So what do these stories mean for Kamara and the Saints? They might be cautionary tales for both parties. Gordon’s failed holdout resulted in an unceremonious departure from the team, and a fresh start on a much-depressed salary. Gurley earned the payout all running backs want (and which Kamara should aspire to), but his performance fell below expectations and the Rams chose to cut him despite losing $20.15 million in dead money.
The lesson here for the Saints and Kamara, if there is one, might be that they should both work to meet in the middle. A market-setting contract would not guarantee that Kamara ends up playing for a different team in a few years, and a holdout might accelerate that change. But if the two sides can work together to find an agreeable salary that keeps Kamara around, everyone wins.
But isn’t that the challenge everyone faces at the negotiating table? With new deals on the horizon for all-star running backs like Kamara, Derrick Henry, Christian McCaffrey, and Kenyan Drake, teams all around the league will soon be grappling with these questions, and maybe looking back at other teams’ struggles to try and learn something.
