The New Orleans Saints believe Travis Etienne Jr. and Alvin Kamara can form one of the NFL's most dangerous duos. CBS Sports' Jared Dubin apparently needs to see it happen on the field before he can give them any recognition.Dubin ranked the league's top 10 running back duos
entering the 2026 season, and the Saints failed to make the cut. Not only did they get left off the list, but they also weren't named among the five honorable mentions.“Weighing individual stardom, balanced backfields, and recent production against projection made it easier said than done,” Dubin wrote. “In some cases, one superstar was enough. In others, injury returns or breakout projections helped duos stand out.”
That willingness to project makes leaving the Saints off
the list even more puzzling. Dubin ranked rookie Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier seventh, while Omarion Hampton and Keaton Mitchell took the final spot despite Mitchell joining the Los Angeles Chargers this offseason and Hampton entering just his second NFL season. Dubin even placed Christian McCaffrey and an undetermined backup at No. 8.
“McCaffrey is so good that it doesn’t matter whether you put Kaelon Black or Jordan James or Isaac Guerendo or Patrick Taylor or me or you or anyone else — the 49ers still deserve to be on this list,” Dubin added.
Etienne and Kamara have yet to share the field, but both have certainly proven they can run, catch, and create mismatches for an offense. Etienne signed a lucrative four-year contract this offseason, giving head coach Kellen Moore another versatile weapon while the Saints manage Kamara's workload after the veteran missed six games last season.
Leaving them outside the honorable mentions feels disrespectful considering several projected, unbalanced, and even undetermined backfields made the list. Here's how the list fell into place:
- 1. Atlanta Falcons: Bijan Robinson, Brian Robinson Jr.
- 2. Detroit Lions: Jahmyr Gibbs, Isiah Pacheco
- 3. Baltimore Ravens: Derrick Henry, Justice Hill
- 4. New England Patriots: Rhamondre Stevenson, TreVeyon Henderson
- 5. Chicago Bears: D'Andre Swift, Kyle Monangai
- 6. Los Angeles Rams: Kyren Williams, Blake Corum
- 7. Arizona Cardinals: Jeremiyah Love, Tyler Allgeier
- 8. San Francisco 49ers: Christian McCaffrey, "whoever"
- 9. Buffalo Bills: James Cook, Ray Davis
- 10. Los Angeles Chargers Omarion Hampton, Keaton Mitchell
Honorable mentions: RJ Harvey and J.K. Dobbins (Broncos), Saquon Barkley and Tank Bigsby (Eagles), Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason (Vikings), Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle (Steelers), Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell (Buccaneers).
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: CBS Sports snubs Travis Etienne Jr., Alvin Kamara in RB duo rankings
