Why the Saints Won't Trade for RB Kareem Hunt
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Cleveland Browns RB Kareem Hunt has reportedly requested a trade from the team. The 27-year-old Hunt, who is entering the last year of his contract, wants a new deal and a bigger role in the offense. Cleveland has publicly said that they have no interest in trading their talented back so far.
A third-round draft choice out of Toledo by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2017 NFL Draft, Hunt is a 5'11” and 215-Lb. power back with solid receiving ability. He has 3,557 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns over his five-year career, averaging 4.6 per carry and adding 176 receptions for 1,596 yards and 16 more scores.
Hunt rushed for an NFL-high 1,327 yards as a rookie with the Chiefs in 2017, scoring 8 touchdowns and hauling in 53 catches for 455 yards. All those numbers would be the best of his career to date. Late in the 2018 season, Hunt was involved in an incident where he was videotaped kicking a woman.
Kansas City released Hunt after the incident and he was subsequently suspended by the NFL for the first half of the 2019 season. Cleveland picked him up after the Chiefs released him, where he’s played the last three seasons.
Hunt has shared backfield duties with Nick Chubb with the Browns. He rushed for 841 yards in 2020 while leading the team in carries. A calf injury limited him to 386 yards in just eight games last season.
New Orleans may be in the market for a running back. Saints RB Alvin Kamara is in some trouble of his own after an offseason arrest in Las Vegas resulting in a felony assault charge. Kamara could be facing a six-game suspension for the incident. However, his preliminary hearing has already been pushed back several times and is now scheduled for late October.
Backing up Kamara is 12-year veteran Mark Ingram and unproven backs like undrafted rookie Abram Smith, Devine Ozigbo, and Tony Jones Jr. With such shaky depth and the possibility of a suspension to their best offensive player, many think that the Saints will add a running back before the start of the regular season.
Here are three reasons why it won't be Kareem Hunt.
1. Trade Compensation
Oct 17, 2021; Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt (27) runs against the Arizona Cardinals. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
If the Browns change their public stance and are willing to take offers for Hunt, it's unclear what their asking price could be. Kareem Hunt has the talent of a top back and would be a featured weapon in most offenses throughout the league.
New Orleans is already without a first-round draft choice in 2023, having traded that to move up and draft WR Chris Olave this spring. It's unlikely that any team trades a first-round pick for Hunt anyway, but New Orleans may need the rest of their remaining picks to fill looming roster holes.
Saints players Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, Erik McCoy, Marcus Davenport, Deonte Harty, David Onyemata, Jarvis Landry, and Shy Tuttle are headed into the last year of their current contracts. New Orleans should certainly be able to re-sign a few of them, but may need next year's draft to replace offseason personnel losses.
One area that the Saints are loaded is at wide receiver, a spot where the Browns are thin. Hypothetically, perhaps New Orleans could swing a trade for Hunt by dealing a veteran wideout like Tre'Quan Smith or Marquez Callaway and a conditional Day 3 draft choice.
2. Contract Demands
Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt (27) catches a pass against the Baltimore Ravens. Mandatory Credit: Leah Stauffer-USA TODAY
Alvin Kamara signed a five-year contract extension in 2020 that keeps him with the team through 2025. The deal makes Kamara one of the NFL's highest paid backs, but well worth it for the dynamic 27-year-old superstar. Kareem Hunt has stated publicly several times this offseason that he wants a new contract of his own.
Hunt will not get a Kamara type of deal, but will likely get a contract worthy of a number one back. It probably won't come from Cleveland. Hunt's teammate, Nick Chubb, has a contract that expires after 2023. The Browns also have to address whether they work out a long-term deal with restricted free-agent RB D'Ernest Johnson.
Both backs are younger than Hunt. While Chubb is likely going to be paid among the league's top backs, Johnson will probably be more affordable to re-sign than Hunt. With Kamara in his prime and other players to pay, it would be a little surprising to see the Saints willing to trade for Kareem Hunt with the idea that they'll sign him to a long-term deal.
Perhaps Hunt would be agreeable to join New Orleans, a bona fide contender, as a one-year ‘‘rental’’. He’d be betting on himself to pull in top dollar as an unrestricted free agent in 2023 with a big year. If Kamara is indeed suspended during the 2022 season, Hunt would be a great fit as the top back during his absence. It could potentially be a win-win situation for both sides.
3. Enough carries to go around?
Jan 10, 2021; Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt (27) runs the ball against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Kareem Hunt has shared backfield duties with Nick Chubb for the last two years in Cleveland, with Chubb getting the greater number of touches. Hunt averaged 20 touches per game over his first two years with Kansas City. In the last two seasons with the Browns, that average has dropped to 14 touches per contest.
Hunt has been effective in a shared role with Chubb, but has indicated that he’d like a bigger role in the offense. He won't get that in Cleveland, which could be another reason that the Browns may entertain trade offers. It also raises the question whether Hunt would be content in another offense where he wouldn't be a featured back.
Alvin Kamara has averaged 18 touches per game over his five-year career with New Orleans, a number that escalated to 22 touches per contest last year. Kamara's 240 rushing attempts in 2021 were 46 more than at any other point in his career. That even with missing four games with a knee injury.
There is no doubt that Kamara would benefit from having a complementary backfield threat. Carrying a heavier rushing load also took away what makes him the NFL's most feared offensive player — his versatility. Kamara caught just 47 passes last year, 34 less than any other season in his career.
There is some doubt whether Mark Ingram can handle the primary load if Kamara misses time. Ingram has had a fine career, but enters his 12th season after dealing with a knee injury last year. Abram Smith, Devine Ozigbo, and Tony Jones Jr. will be given early chances in camp to prove if they can be legitimate threats in the offense.
The postponement of Kamara's preliminary court date all but guarantees that he won't be suspended to start the season. A prolonged court hearing may also mean that he won't even get suspended at all during the 2022 season.
Kareem Hunt's running style and receiving skills would be a great fit in the New Orleans attack. However, the Saints offense still revolves around the versatile abilities of Kamara. Another effective rushing threat would allow Kamara to move around the formation, where he is most dangerous.
New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (41) runs during training camp at Ochsner Sports Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
Smith, Ozigbo, and Jones will be given opportunities to grab that role early in preseason alongside Ingram. If none stand out, then the Saints will then look to bring on another back later in camp. With an early season suspension to Kamara now off the table, that decreases the desperation to add another proven back now.
The Cleveland Browns may change their public stance about their willingness to trade Kareem Hunt. Even if they do, with his contract and workload expectations, don't look for Hunt to wind up in New Orleans.
