A sickness moving through a locker room is hardly the kind of subplot any team wants on game day, and the Saints are dealing with exactly that as Minnesota comes to town.
Reporter Nick Underhill flagged the situation on X ahead of Sunday’s matchup, writing, “Subplot for today: There’s a major sickness running through the locker room. See how it impacts things,”
He didn’t identify the players involved or say what illness is going around, but the warning landed after a miserable Monday night for New Orleans. The Falcons rolled the Saints 45-24 and pounded them on the ground for five touchdowns. Bijan Robinson ran for 145 yards and two scores, and Brian Robinson added three touchdowns of his own.
The Saints’ injury reports have already reflected some of that concern. Defensive tackle Christen Miller was listed on Friday with an illness, was questionable, and did not practice.
RotoWire reported Saturday that Nathan Shepherd was also questionable because of an illness. Then on Sunday, Saints Wire reported Vernon Broughton was added late to the injury report with an illness as well.
Shepherd and Broughton both show up on the Saints’ inactives list for Sunday, though that list does not give a reason for either one. Miller is not on it.
The same inactive list also includes linebacker Kaden Elliss, edge rusher Anfernee Jennings and guard Jeremiah Wright, all of whom were ruled out on Friday because of injuries. Running back Alvin Kamara, who was questionable with a back injury, is not on the inactive list.
The reports do not say whether the illnesses are connected, but the timing is tough to ignore. New Orleans is already coming off a game in which it gave up five rushing touchdowns, and losing two defensive linemen would leave the front even thinner against an unbeaten Vikings team.
The Saints have already been through a strange stretch, from a wiped-out touchdown in Detroit to the loss on Monday night. Sunday will reveal whether this new illness becomes another issue or just a minor wrinkle in an already rocky week.
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Even with Kamara trending toward availability, the workload picture is not exactly clear. He has seen limited snap shares this season and is likely to share carries with Kendre Miller, which makes the matchup in Minnesota even trickier against a defense that has been one of the leagues toughest. For New Orleans, the real question is not just whether Kamara suits up, but how much he can actually handle once the game starts. [Read more 🡒]