“Resource management” suggests Kamara’s future will come down to finances. The soon-to-be 31-year-old Kamara is set to account for $10.4 million in cap space in 2026. A June 1 (or later) cut would only relieve the Saints of $376,000 of that total in 2026, but would significantly reduce the dead cap number they’ll have to carry in 2027, a void year that is scheduled to eat up $16.26 million in space if Kamara spends the upcoming season with the Saints.
Kamara’s future has been in doubt since the Saints signed Travis Etienne in March, signaling a changing of the guard in a backfield that already confronted a future without him in 2025, a season in which a knee issue limited Kamara to 11 games, a career-low 471 rushing yards and one total touchdown. For the first time in his nine-year career, Kamara faded from the central focus of the Saints’ offense to a secondary character, giving the club a preview of a future life without him.
Kamara, who recently said he’s looking forward to Year 10 in New Orleans, could soon find himself exiting as a cap casualty, primarily because the Saints likely don’t want to reserve nearly $30 million of cap space for one running back on the roster (Etienne, scheduled for a $13 million cap number in 2027) and another whose contract expires after 2026.
Lastly, the 35-year-old Hill seems headed for either retirement or a reunion with former Saints coach Sean Payton in Denver. The beloved utility player has not received a contract offer from Loomis’ front office and already suggested his time in New Orleans might be nearing an end when he reflected on his career with the Saints during an emotional postgame news conference in December.
“That’s more discussion that Taysom and I probably have to have,” Loomis said. “Those guys have earned the right for self-determination. We’re not going to put any deadlines on anything.”
With Moore at the helm, the Saints are finally extricating themselves from an era defined by Payton and legendary quarterback Drew Brees, and have begun to pave a new path forward. With a new journey comes changes, including a diminished role for Hill in his ninth season in New Orleans that suggested he no longer served the same useful purpose he embraced under Payton.
Whether that leads him back to Payton or to the happy trails of retirement remains to be seen. As is the case with Kamara and Jordan, we’ll likely receive answers on all three within the next month, if not sooner.
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