Drew Brees isn’t only major injury Saints have to worry about

The New Orleans Saints could be shorthanded in more ways than one on Sunday.

While Drew Brees is expected to miss a few weeks — and could be placed on injured reserve, forcing him out three consecutive games — the Saints might also be without Alvin Kamara if his foot doesn’t shape up. According to Adam Schefter, Kamara sat out the Saints Thursday practice, leaving his status for Sunday’s game against the Falcons up in the air.

New Orleans is already relying heavily on Jameis Winston to fill in during Brees’ absence. If they’re without Kamara as well, their offense will be a shoddy version of themselves. Kamara has played exceptionally well even while Brees has struggled, making up for the frequently-missing Michael Thomas.

Who would step in if Kamara were forced out of action?

Latavius Murray would get the bulk of the carries at running back if Kamara doesn’t play. Sean Payton has also hinted that Taysom Hill will receive plenty of playing time at the quarterback position as well, limiting the workload for Kamara or any other back the Saints wish to trot out there. Such a fate could be good for Kamara even if he’s healthy, as they’d prefer to keep him healthy for the stretch run, rather than rely too heavily on him for a winnable game against the Falcons.

Brees looked remarkably human this season, as his arm strength withered by the week. Winston finally has a chance to prove himself as a de facto tryout, either for the Saints or some other team, as he’ll hit the free agent market after the year is up. The former No. 1 overall pick has plenty of talent, but is careless with the ball far too often. In Tampa, he was a turnover machine. We’ll see if being coached up by Payton has taught him anything in that department.

Having Kamara as an ally in the backfield would help Winston and the Saints immensely in that transition.