Mark Ingram can make the Pro Bowl with more opportunities next season

By: Jake Rajala

The New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram was delighted to return to The Big Easy in 2021. Ingram was reunited with the team that drafted him and he even made Brandin Cooks jealous that he was back in the Black and Gold.

Ingram had four seasons of 700+ rushing yards, 50+ rushing touchdowns with the Saints prior to joining the Ravens. He’s currently the Saints all-time leading rusher in yards and touchdowns. It’s clear that he was a pillar of consistency and a key part of the Drew Brees-led offense throughout his Saints tenure. Furthermore, the Saints were thankful and full of bliss when they were able to bring him home last season.

Ingram was brought in as the backup to Alvin Kamara last season, but he looked like a fine 1B in many contests. Ingram averaged 3.8 YPC, but I believe that’s an impressive stat given how broken the Saints offensive line was in 2021. Alvin Kamara yielded a career-low 3.7 YPC last season.

According to NFL.com, Ingram averaged 5.2 YPC from September, October, and November combined. Ingram was clearly explosive and hitting the hole well when the offensive line was playing modest at worst. The last two times Ingram averaged 4.9+ YPC in a 16 game season, he made the Pro Bowl. Ingram also averaged 19.7 receiving yards per game with the Saints last season, which was his highest receiving YPG since 2017.

To be fair, a player is judged for how they perform in 16 games and not 12 games. Although, it needs to point out how porous and crippled the Saints offense was in December.

Ingram and the rest of the offense took a major dip in December. The Saints played the Buccaneers and Dolphins in two of the four games in December, as Who Dat Nation watched their offense mightily struggle. Injuries and COVID really haunted the Saints offense late in 2021. Ingram only mustered out a 2.4 YPC in December, as the offense completely sputtered out late in the season.

The Saints OT tandem, which is arguably the best in the NFL, missed a combined 16 games last season. Matter, in fact, the Saints had a record of 58 different starters last season. It would be an understatement to say it was tough sledding for the Saints RB tandem in 2021, especially in the cold month of December.

I believe Ingram was fresh, explosive, and in sync with the scheme that he knew all too well. Ingram was very efficient in 2021, but I believe he can be “very productive” in 2022.

The Saints will likely lose Alvin Kamara to a six-game suspension next season. He will clearly be the bell-cow in Kamara’s shoes the expected six-plus games in 2022. The universe/football gods shouldn’t deal consistent blows to the Saints offensive line, particularly against Ryan Ramcyzyk, who’s only missed one game prior to 2021. Musical chairs will most likely not be on the menu for the Saints OL in 2022.

Finally, the Saints should have a healthy Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas in their offense moving forward. The Saints won’t march into contests where opposing defenses fill the box and show no worry of the Saints passing attack. Expect the Saints 2011 NFL draft from Alabama pick to run strong next season and help his team push for their second taste of Super Bowl triumph.