The New Orleans Saints didn’t wait long to address their suddenly depleted running back room. The injury bug bit the Saints hard — so New Orleans acquired running back Zamir White from the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for veteran linebacker Deion Jones.
White gives the Saints an experienced option behind Travis Etienne Jr. while Alvin Kamara recovers from a sprained MCL and Devin Neal deals with a hamstring injury. It’s a move that makes plenty of sense for New Orleans, especially given what it cost.
Jones had only joined the Saints earlier in August and faced an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster. Instead of losing him during roster cuts, general manager Mickey Loomis and the team’s front office flipped him for a player at one of the team’s biggest current positions of need.
Is White a star? No. But he is an experienced NFL RB at a position where depth has become a major concern.
White’s best NFL season came with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2023, when he rushed for 451 yards on 104 carries and averaged 4.3 yards per attempt. His production has fallen off since then, which is the biggest reason why this deal doesn’t climb into the “A” range.
Still, the Saints aren’t asking White to come in and carry their offense. They’re asking him to provide reliable depth while the backfield gets healthy, and there’s value in adding a player who has already handled an NFL workload. There isn’t much downside here. If White can rediscover some of the form he showed in 2023, the Saints might have found a useful rotational piece. If not, they still added an experienced body to a thin position group without giving up anything significant.
It’s not a blockbuster by any means. However, for where the Saints stand right now, turning a player who wasn’t going to make the roster, Jones, into depth at a vulnerable position group (running back) a solid piece of business.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Grade the Trade: Did Saints come out ahead in Zamir White deal?
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