Imagine, if you can, the Baltimore Ravens driving down the field with Derrick Henry toting the rock, just like they have so many times in the past few years.
Henry gets the ball, play after play, slowly demoralizing and physically degrading a defense — seemingly by himself. Linebackers are whiffing. Cornerbacks are praying he doesn’t bounce one outside. Defensive tackles are gasping for air. It can’t get any worse for an NFL defense, right?
All of a sudden, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson flicks a screen pass to the flat.
The edge rusher looks confused. That’s not a Derrick Henry play, right?
Instead, the ball lands in the hands of NFL All-Pro running back Alvin Kamara, who, with fresh legs, seems like he’s been shot out of a rocket.
Don’t think it could happen? Recent comments from Kamara indicated, for the 1st time, that he might be open to a trade — a trade the Ravens would be smart to make.
‘I’m Just Chilling’: Alvin Kamara Seems Open to Deal
Kamara has long said he doesn’t want to be traded and remain with the only franchise he’s ever known. He’s played his entire career with the Saints after they selected him in the 3rd round of the 2017 NFL draft.
Recently, though, Kamara showed up out of the blue for Saints OTAs — not somewhere anyone usually sees him — and seemed to be singing a different tune.
“(I’m) just chilling,” Kamara said on June 3, while wearing a Baltimore Orioles hat. “Right now, the plan is I’m still under contract, so I’m a Saint. So, we’ll see if anything happens, then we’ll go from there.”
Kamara has been one of the NFL’s most exciting running backs for the last decade — and paid like it. He signed a 5-year, $75 million contract extension in 2020, followed by a 2-year, $24.5 million contract extension in 2024.
He’s also a prime candidate for a post-June 1 trade.
“While Kamara is on the roster now, that could change after June 1,” Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox wrote on May 7. “After that date, the Saints would save $456,741 in cap space by trading him. Moving him before June 1 would cost $7.6 million in additional 2026 cap space. While New Orleans is unlikely to get a massive return for an aging back, Kamara’s dual-threat ability should warrant some interest from running back-needy teams. The Saints will be more likely to accept a bargain offer once the cap hit of moving Kamara becomes more manageable.”
How Alvin Kamara Might Fit With Ravens
The Ravens have a pressing need at running back to help take some of the pressure off Henry, who is also 1 decade into a legendary career.
Baltimore had a good-to-great 2nd option in Keaton Mitchell, but declined to give him a restricted free agent tender in March, which would have kept him with the Ravens for just $3.25 million in 2026.
Instead, Mitchell left for a 2-year, $9.25 million free-agent contract with the Los Angeles Chargers.
“Yes, the Ravens still have Derrick Henry, but a loaded backfield is never a problem,” Ebony Bird’s Jaleel Grandberry wrote on June 5. “Additionally, Kamara is a much different back than Henry, and the Saints legend could emerge as a huge factor in the passing game in Baltimore. Also, Kamara would be an upgrade at RB2 over Justice Hill, while simultaneously giving rookie fifth-rounder Adam Randall time to develop.
Ravens May Have Opening to Trade for $75 Million RB