New Orleans Saints Running Back Alvin Kamara
Video Call with New Orleans Media
Thursday, October 29, 2020

What was your hurricane experience like yesterday?
"The power is still out. So that pretty much sums it up."

What was it like just kind of going through it?
"I mean, the power went out and it was raining, it was windy. I'm from Atlanta, we don't really deal with hurricanes. But then my sister called me and told me her power went out too. I don't know, it's just one of those things you can't (control). It's nature, it's like, man."

Has being a thousand yard receiver and thousand yard rusher, is that like a goal of yours at all? Or is that something you wanted to achieve?
"Yeah, I mean, I guess I would be lying if I said no. I'm just going to do what I've got to do to, like I've always said, do what I've got to do to help the team win. Rushing, receiving, returning, anything. That's just a part of the game so I kind of just try to do it all."

I know the Saints, kind of like to manage your touches and whatnot. Is part of that where you kind of recognize maybe you could have already achieved that, but just because of the management style, maybe it doesn't always work out that way?
"It might be. I don't know. I just do my job. I've got a job to do."

How good has the offensive line been in space so far this season? I'm talking about in the screen game and the outside run game at the second level. How good have they been down field?
"They've been great. They've been awesome. I think it's something that if you look across the league, some teams can't do that. I think with our line being so athletic and being good, I mean, not only in that aspect, but just movement and pass (protection) and things like that. When they get down to field, it's like, they don't miss a beat. I mean, they take as much pride in it as they do protecting Drew (Brees)."

You're off to a pretty historic start, one of the more productive starts of your career. What would you attribute this good start to right now?
"Just health. Being healthy, being able to be healthy and just opportunity. Last year was a down year, just dealing with some injuries and things like that. Just being able to refocus during the offseason and come back healthy and ready and just hungry to play and succeed. And then, of course, the success of the team that comes with being able to have individual success. Team success, obviously, is a big part in that, too. I'm just blessed to be able to be out there playing and producing and just doing what I've got to do."

You're averaging about 20 touches a game, which I think is the highest in your career. Are you feeling it on Mondays? And have you developed like a body maintenance routine to take care of that?
"Oh, yeah, I've always had a routine, but I feel, I mean, on Mondays, I feel good. There's not like a moment where I'm rolling out of bed and I'm like, ugh, 20 touches. I feel good. I mean, if you do what you've got to do to take care your body, it starts right after the game with me. I feel fine."

Sean (Payton) was talking earlier about just how smart you are on the field and Drew (Brees) was saying you're the guy in the huddle that can kind of help if somebody doesn't know a play call or anything like that. But Sean was also saying he has to come up with ways to keep you focused. Is the game just easy for you, like is there just times in the meetings where you get it so quick that it's just easy?
"That's like the ongoing joke with me, like, my attention span when it comes to some of these things. I do kind of pride myself in being smart and being able to retain information. So there's times where even Coach (Joel) Thomas, I'm talking to him, and I'm like, yo, just chill, like, I got it. A lot of times, they're trying to tell me, you know, 'Hey, you've got this or you've got this on this play.' I'm like, I got it. It may seem like I don't because I'm kind of like, I just got to try to have fun and keep it light. They're always checking on me like you know what you've got? I'm like, yeah, I've got it. I don't know. Sean is funny. He's got to give me a fidget spinner again. He got me a fidget spinner, like two years ago, but he hasn't come up with nothing to keep me occupied yet, so I'm waiting on that."

Is there anything that when you watch back on film, you're like, how did I do that?
"Not really, I'll be knowing. I'm trying to score and I'm trying to not get hit and not get touched. That's pretty much the goal of the game for me."

Is there anything or any part of the game that you feel you've had to work at since it does sort of seem like a lot of it looks real effortless to you?
"Man, I think with pass protection, I think that's always, not to say I'm bad at it, but that's always like an evolving thing with pass protection. Because so many teams like, especially I feel like when they play us, it's like a new wrinkle they throw in the game. Even though it comes easy to me, it's like, sometimes it's so easy that I might just get lazy and my eyes (may) be somewhere else drifting off. I've kind of got to remind myself to just lock in a little bit more and be more attentive to certain details when it comes to pass protection. But I think that's about it."

Were you happy you got a chance to throw a pass in the game, even if it was a backwards pass?
"It was backwards, and it was a little ugly, but I think I'm trying to petition the throw the ball down the field. Next time I get swing or something, I might just tell like TQ (Tre'Quan Smith) to just run a go and I might just launch it or something. It's like one of those bad moments that turned into a good moment, like, what is he doing? And then it's like, yeah, touchdown. I don't know. I need to throw the ball. I feel like my arm is getting a little tired. It's getting tired because it's not getting used. It's bored."

The broadcast said that you won a competition in practice?
"I'm good! I can throw the ball. I need to display my talent."

Do you feel like it's been tough mentally at all on the team just not knowing since week one, like whether or not Mike Thomas is going to be able to play from a health standpoint? Or has that not really crossed your mind too much?
"I think everybody, I mean, in our league, in this game, we all know it's a 100% injury rate. So it's week to week managing injuries, getting to 100%. Everybody has a duty to do that. I mean, it's not are injuries going to come, it's when they're going to come and managing that. And as a team, as an offense specifically, I think we've done a good job of managing those injuries. Certain people go down, somebody else has to step in and step up. And then Mike individually, he's doing what he has to do to get back healthy. So he has to do what he has to do and get healthy and we can't wait to have him back. He's a big part of our offense."