New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara spoke with media about playing quarterback, telling them he was ready to “get my Drew Brees on.”
The Saints have had quite a carousel of quarterbacks in the past year in Drew Brees, Jameis Winston, Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian.
Drew Brees got off the carousel after the NFC Divisional Round pushed him into retirement. Then came Jameis Winston, who carried the Saints through a 4-2 record until an ACL tear in Week 8 put him on the sidelines for the rest of the season.
Taysom Hill exited in Week 5, although he is slated to return this Sunday.
So in their Week 8 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the only person left to play quarterback was Trevor Siemian.
Or was it?
Apparently not — running back Alvin Kamara was revealed to be the Saints’ emergency quarterback.
The morning after their astounding Halloween win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Saints coach Sean Payton appeared on local New Orleans radio for his weekly appearance on the WWL-AM Coaches Show.
When asked who would play if Siemian got hurt, Payton shared the surprising answer: “Yesterday, it was Kamara.”
Kamara elaborated on his emergency QB designation in meeting with media on Thursday, joking around as he spoke about his readiness to take the reins of the offense.
“They came up to me on the side, and I had my little helmet with the mics in it,” Kamara said. “I was ready, I was about to put it on. I was like, ‘Okay, it’s my time to shine, probably get a little bit more money, you know,” he joked. “Throw a couple passes, get my Drew Brees on.”
Alvin Kamara revealed to be the Saints emergency quarterback
When a reporter asked if Kamara would have been running wildcat plays, Kamara took offense to the suggestion that he wasn’t a capable passer.
“Wildcat? That’s disrespectful,” he laughed.
“It would have been a wild performance,” Kamara said if he was given the opportunity to play quarterback.
In reality, Kamara has only attempted one pass in his NFL career, completing a 13-yard pass to Josh Hill against the Buccaneers in 2019. But in high school, Kamara completed two of four attempts for 65 yards and a touchdown.
Despite the lacking experience, Kamara is confident of his quarterbacking skills, joking with media this preseason about not being considered in the Saints quarterback discussion.
“No offseason talk of me in the quarterback battle? Nothing. No ESPN hot takes? Nothing,” Kamara said after practice on Aug. 20. “I’m keeping my arm hot. If both (Winston and Hill) want to retire or do something, I’ll be there. I’ll be alright. I’ll throw a (No. 9 uniform) on too, for Drew (Brees).”
