Tag: Eno Benjamin

26 days till the Cardinals’ season opener against the Bills

CB Bobby Price has No. 26 now. Eno Benjamin wore it before him.

The Arizona Cardinals are headed to Indianapolis on this lovely Tuesday and are four days away from their next preseason game when they take on the Indianapolis Colts.

They are 26 days from their Week 1 regular-season opener against the Buffalo Bills on the road on September 8.

The Cardinals’ current no. 26 is cornerback Bobby Price, who appeared in six games last season, standing out on special teams.

Prior to him, running back Eno Benjamin wore No. 26 and had some impact, although it was short-lived.

Benjamin was drafted out of Arizona State in the seventh round in 2020 and carved out a nice role in 2022.

He rushed for over 400 yards between 2021 and 2022 and had a 92-yard game in 2022. However, he was surprisingly cut after there was some supposed argument with the coaches. He hasn’t done anything in the league really since.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Report: Kareem Hunt seeking more than a minimum deal, may not make quick decision

NFL Network reports Kareem Hunt is seeking more than a veteran minimum deal, and may not make a quick decision during his Saints free agent visit:

Here’s an update on the New Orleans Saints’ Monday visit with free agent running back Kareem Hunt, with NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reporting that Hunt isn’t looking to settle for a veteran minimum contract. He’s coming off a two-year, $12 million deal with the Cleveland Browns and is hoping for an offer that exceeds the $1.08 million base salary he qualifies for as a sixth-year pro.

“Kareem Hunt has been biding his time waiting for the right opportunity, still wants to make a little bit of money so I don’t get the sense he’s gonna get a minimum deal,” Rapoport shared. “That visit starts tonight, may not get some news today on that. But New Orleans does have a bit of a need there.”

Rapoport added that the Saints already had a need for another running back after news broke of Alvin Kamara’s three-game suspension to start the season, only for that priority to rise higher once Kamara’s backup Eno Benjamin suffered a season-ending Achilles injury.

Hunt still shouldn’t break the bank, and the Saints have ample resources to allocate for him with about $12.9 million in salary cap space per Over The Cap records. If New Orleans can reach an agreement with the one-time NFL rushing leader, he would make a lot of sense in their backfield with Jamaal Williams and Kendre Miller.

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Saints hosting RB Kareem Hunt on free agent visit

Looking to add to the RB room after suspension to Alvin Kamara and injury to Eno Benjamin, Saints host free agent Kareem Hunt | @ClutchWDN

The New Orleans Saints have recently been dealt a few blows at the running back position. This includes a suspension to Alvin Kamara for the first three weeks of the season and a season-ending Achilles injury to Eno Benjamin. This news has prompted the Saints to hold a meeting with free agent running back Kareem Hunt, formerly of the Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler first reported news of Hunt’s visit.

Now you may ask, why bring in another back when the team already has Jamaal Williams and Kendre Miller to carry the load? The reason for this is to somewhat fill the role Kamara would play out of the backfield on screens and as another receiving option. Hunt had a solid 2022 season in the receiving game last year, with 35 receptions for 210 yards (6.0 yards per reception), 1 touchdown catch, and a 79.5% catch rate. On top of that, he also brings versatility on the ground, with 123 carries for 468 yards (3.8 yards per carry) and 3 touchdowns last year.

Logistically speaking, Hunt would not completely re-define the New Orleans running game.  However, he would add some much-needed depth to the position when Kamara is serving is suspension, and in the event of any more absences We will see if the signing takes place later, but for now, it would make sense for it to take place.

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Saints say backup RB Eno Benjamin ruptured his Achilles at training camp practice

Saints coach Dennis Allen says backup running back Eno Benjamin ruptured his Achilles at Saturday’s training camp practice:

This is brutal: New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen opened his press conference on Saturday by sharing that running back Eno Benjamin suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon at their Aug. 5 training camp practice. Benjamin will undergo further evaluations but these are simple injuries to diagnose on the field and likely season-ending.

It’s a really tough break for the backup running back. Benjamin was competing with Kirk Merritt and Ellis Merriweather to reinforce the depth chart behind Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams. NewOrleans.Football’s Brooke Kirchhofer reported from the scene, saying that Benjamin “planted to take off on a route and immediately went down. He was carted off and didn’t return to practice.”

The 24-year-old landed with New Orleans last year after bouncing around the league — he was waived by the Arizona Cardinals, claimed by the Houston Texans, then waived again before the Saints picked him up. Now he’ll have to recover from a painful injury and hope to continue his career after a delay of months if not a full year. New Orleans may look to sign a free agent running back to maintain depth through training camp.

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Kirk Merritt getting an extended tryout at running back in Year 2 with the Saints

With a growing crowd at wide receiver, Kirk Merritt is getting an extended tryout at running back in Year 2 with the New Orleans Saints:

With a growing crowd at wide receiver, Kirk Merritt is getting an extended tryout at running back in his second season with the New Orleans Saints. Merritt spent a little time in the backfield late last summer, logging a handful of carries at running back in the Saints’ final preseason games, but for the most part his attention has focused on competing for a roster spot at his natural position as a wide receiver, per Sports Illustrated’s Ross Jackson.

But an offseason full of additions to the receiving corps has him shifting gears to make a better case for a roster spot. Merritt, listed at 6-foot-1 and 214 pounds, has similar size and impressive all-around athletic testing results than other running backs on the roster like Eno Benjamin, his likeliest competition for a spot on the depth chart in the fall.

With Alvin Kamara, Jamaal Williams, and Kendre Miller locked in to the top three spots, odds are the Saints will want either Benjamin or Merritt to make a compelling argument through steady play on special teams covering punts and kickoffs, and that’s an area Merritt has excelled before. Undrafted rookies SaRodorick Thompson (Texas Tech) and Ellis Merriweather (UMass) are also in the mix, but they’re heavier backs like Williams and Miller, all listed at 220 to 224 pounds.

The implied goal here seems to be a search for Kamara’s immediate backup, which makes sense seeing as he’s expected to miss extensive time serving an NFL suspension once his Las Vegas assault case concludes. maybe Merritt has what it takes to fill that role on offense. The next few weeks are going to be critical for him as the Saints test his skills not just as a runner or receiver, but hanging back in pass protection, which they’ve always valued highly.

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1 veteran player on roster bubble at each position group for the Saints

Some training camp competitions are brewing for the Saints: Here’s one veteran player on the roster bubble at each position group to watch closely this summer:

Some training camp competitions are brewing for the New Orleans Saints, who signed a number of veteran free agents before spending seven draft picks and investing in 13 undrafted rookies. The end result is that some of their more-experienced teammates are going to feel pressure for their job, or be the target of poaching by other squads.

Here’s one veteran player on the roster bubble at each position group to watch closely this summer:

Updating the New Orleans Saints depth chart at RB ahead of 2023 NFL draft

How high of a priority is running back? Updating the New Orleans Saints depth chart at RB ahead of the 2023 NFL draft:

The 2023 NFL draft is three weeks out, and an underrated team need for the New Orleans Saints lies at running back. Alvin Kamara is likely going to miss time with a league suspension following last year’s arrest in Las Vegas (for which he’ll go on trial in July), and though the Saints made a splashy free agent signing in Jamaal Williams the cupboard is otherwise looking kind of bare. The draft is a great opportunity for them to reload a thin spot on the depth chart.

Here are the running backs under contract for 2023, with new additions in bold:

  • Alvin Kamara
  • Jamaal Williams
  • Eno Benjamin
  • Derrick Gore
  • Adam Prentice (fullback)

Mark Ingram II, Dwayne Washington, and David Johnson are still unsigned free agents from last year’s team, and it’s possible one or more of them returns on another minimum deal. But neither Ingram nor Johnson were very effective when called upon, and Washington missed most of the last month of the season with serious cluster migraines, so it’s possible the Saints continue to look to a new direction as they restock the depth chart.

They’re certainly doing their homework on this draft class. The Saints have been linked to mid-round prospects like TCU’s Kendre Miller, UAB’s DeWayne McBride, Pitt’s Israel Abanikanda, and the local favorite out of Tulane, Tyjae Spears, among others. All of those players project to be picked in rounds three or four, though it only takes one team to like them enough to select them higher.

The Saints made it clear last year that they wanted to be a run-first offense, but they weren’t very efficient at it. They ranked in the top half of the league in carries (492, or 28.9 per game) but placed in the NFL’s bottom half in rushing yards (2,218, or 130.4 per game), touchdown runs (12 in 17 games), and yards per attempt (4.3). A team that wants to run as badly as they do should be performing at a higher level.

Much of that is on the offensive line, which struggled to pave the way; New Orleans ranked fifth-worst in 2.4 yards per carry before contact with a defender, per Pro Football Reference. But the Saints running backs didn’t make much happen on their own, either. Just three teams had fewer broken tackles on running plays than the Saints (14) last year: the Chargers (12), Falcons (10), and Buccaneers (9).

Kamara can still be effective in the right role, but the Saints have done him a disservice in recent years by running him into the teeth of the defense over and over again, and often with poor blocking in front of him. Williams should do a lot to help liven up the ground game, and Benjamin might have something to offer, but New Orleans needs to prioritize another running back with fresh legs. Getting an electrifying rookie like Spears or Miller in the mix would go a long way.

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Saints send Mark Ingram II to injured reserve, designate multiple others to return

The Saints sent Mark Ingram II to injured reserve while designating multiple others to return, including starting center Erik McCoy. Catch up on the latest roster moves:

The New Orleans Saints filed a series of roster moves on Wednesday’s update to the daily NFL transactions wire, shuffling a couple of players to and from the injured reserve list while restocking some depth on the 53-man roster and practice squad. Here’s what you need to know about each new arrival, departure, and injury situation:

Saints claim former Cardinals RB Eno Benjamin off of waivers

The New Orleans Saints have claimed former Arizona Cardinals and Houston Texans RB Eno Benjamin off of waivers, via @DillySanders:

The New Orleans Saints have claimed former Cardinals and brief Texans running back Eno Benjamin on the waivers today, per his agents at Rosenhaus Sports Representation. Benjamin has a real possibility to stick around and replace the snaps lost in the wake of Mark Ingram II’s knee injury.

Benjamin, only 23 years old, is a former seventh-round selection in the 2020 NFL draft. The former Arizona State Sun Devil has 104 career rushes for 417 yards and three touchdowns. It is important to note that the two offensive lines he’s run behind in his pro career have been pretty dire. He had a lot of potential coming out of college.

He’s been pretty effective as a pass catcher out of the backfield, something the Saints will likely ask him to do a bit of. He has 30 career receptions for 226 yards. Overall, he’s a pretty solid replacement for Ingram who could compliment Alvin Kamara. They have similar builds and play-styles, he should be able to slip into the lineup fairly seamlessly.

He was a large part of the Cardinals victory over the the Saints this year, where he had 21 rushes for 92 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He also added 4 catches for 21 yards. It could just be another roster filler, but this move has a lot more potential than the other running backs the team has brought in throughout the season.

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Texans waive RB Eno Benjamin, re-sign Gerrid Doaks

The Houston Texans waived RB Eno Benjamin on Dec. 13 and brought back RB Gerrid Doaks.

The Houston Texans are shuffling their running backs ahead of their Week 15 encounter with the Kansas City Chiefs.

According to Aaron Wilson from KPRC-TV, the Texans waived running back Eno Benjamin. The former Arizona Cardinals 2020 seventh-round pick was active in two games for Houston, carrying three times for a yards among his 12 offensive snaps with the Texans.

Houston re-signed running back Gerrid Doaks, who previously was on the team’s practice squad. The Texans initially picked up Doaks on Sept. 7 after the Miami Dolphins released him as part of their cut to a 53-man roster at the end of preseason. Houston released Doaks from their practice squad on Nov. 16.