2026 draft implications for Saints and Alvin Kamara, Cameron Jordan

Much of the attention on the 2026 NFL Draft will rightfully go to the rookie players hearing their names called from the podium, but they aren't the only ones impacted by learning where they'll go. Veterans like New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara and free agent defensive end Cameron Jordan are also going to change their outlook over the long weekend.

And that's something Saints general manager Mickey Loomis is very mindful of. It was one topic that came up briefly during his pre-draft press conference.

"Yeah, I think that it could impact it," Loomis acknowledged, when asked if the team's upcoming moves could change things for "unsettled" vets like Kamara or Jordan. "We'll see what happens. And that goes both ways. That may impact them from their perspective as well as ours."

Now what does Loomis mean by that? Let's start with Jordan. He's spoken before about wanting to feel valued by whichever team he's playing for in 2026, whether that's the Saints or someone else, and that goes beyond his contract. Jordan wants opportunities to rush the quarterback and pad out his sacks numbers, giving him an opportunity to climb that leaderboard and help his chances for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. If the Saints draft a pass rusher early on like Rueben Bain Jr. (Miami) or Arvell Reese (Ohio State), that's going to make a return much less appealing. Even if he's the franchise sacks leader, Jordan isn't going to take snaps away from the eighth overall pick.

What about Kamara? Right now, he's second on the depth chart behind Travis Etienne Jr., and he could be pushed further down by the Saints drafting Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame) in Round 1. That isn't very likely (Love is projected to go before New Orleans picks) but what if someone like Mike Washington Jr. (Arkansas) is their pick on Day 2? Kamara struggled to get going in the inside zone runs New Orleans favored last year, and his struggles in pass protection led the Saints to play another rookie draft pick, , ahead of him. Then his year ended with injury. It isn't impossible to see Kamara on the team in the fall with Etienne on top of the pecking order, but adding a top-100 pick to the mix may send him looking elsewhere. Expect Kamara to be watching with the same anxiety a lot of fans will be feeling.