SmashMouth

Saints coach Sean Payton spent a lot of time talking about officiating at this week’s league meetings, but that wasn’t the only topic of conversation he engaged in during his time with reporters.

Payton also discussed the change to the team’s backfield that took place. Mark Ingram left for the Ravens as a free agent and Latavius Murray will now join Alvin Kamara as the running back duo in New Orleans. Payton said he is excited about having Murray and complimented the new arrival’s “exceptional speed” and ability as a pass blocker.

Payton also lamented the way that things unfolded with Ingram, who spent the last eight years in New Orleans.

“It happened pretty quickly,” Payton said, via NOLA.com. “Look, I’m excited for Mark’s opportunity. He’s been a tremendous, tremendous player for us and leader for us. It was frustrating because I felt there was little dialogue. At least usually, I’m able to visit with the player, and I wasn’t able to, so the ends and outs specifically to how that unfolded still to me are a little bit cloudy. Tried texting him, tried calling him, direct message. He texted me back, and then the next day we weren’t able to speak.”

Ingram signed a three-year, $15 million contract with $6.5 million in guaranteed money while the Saints gave Murray a four-year, $14.4 million deal with $7.2 million guaranteed in the first two years of the deal.

PFT

CHA_CHING

With all due respect to Ingram, he never lived up to the hype and potential from where he was drafted and the fact we had to trade for him.

I wish him well, but I don't think he'll be a huge loss. Kamara quickly outshined him and in both of our last playoff years, Kamara was the difference maker.

Euphoria

Yeah he was good for us but I never saw him hit that homerun as often as I would have liked from him.

CHA_CHING

I 100% agree here.

RBs are inter-changeable. The Giants drafted Barkley last year who is a stud, but he didn't really fix the Giants offensive woes and their passing game was as horrific as it was the previous year without him.

In my opinion, Walter Payton was the GOAT of running backs and the Bears only got a single SB ring out of him.... and yet it took a historical defense and an above average passing game that made them a truly elite offense, all to get that 1 SB ring with him.

WhoDat!656

IMO, fans never forgave Ingram for getting stuffed on and 2-point conversion play on the road against the Packers in his rookie year; I personally don't blame him because every person watching knew that Ingram was going to get the ball.

And he fumbled against the seapigeons in a road playoff game, so that didn't help his resume either.

Rugby Saint II

Just imagine how frustrated Mark Ingram is with the way things worked out.

AsylumGuido

It sounds like his agent didn't try hard at all for Ingram to remain in New Orleans. His frustration should be with the agent.

CHA_CHING

We lost that game to Green Bay in 2011 due to not having any defense. I can't blame that game solely on Ingram, cause we nearly gave up 50 points that night. Rodgers picked on Patrick Robinson that entire game, who was a weak link in the defense at the time. You could also blame special teams cause I remember Randall Cobb going off. That's back when the Packers were an actual scary team, back when Rodgers was at his peak as an elite QB and they had multiple weapons on offense (and yet still went one and done in the playoffs that year LOL).

Ingram was an inconsistent RB and fans had every right to feel disappointed in him considering where he was drafted in the first round and the fact we traded up for him. The Bears just traded Jordan Howard away whom in 3 years accomplished much more than Ingram. Ingram's best two seasons still aren't as good as Howard's rookie season. The Bears trading a good RB like that is proof that they are inter-changeable. People tend to put too much emphasis on RBs. Like I said in a previous post; I believe Walter Payton was the GOAT RB and yet the Bears only got a single SB ring out of him and it took a historical defense and an above average passing game for them to get there. On other sites, people like to throw Emmitt Smith in there, but he don't get his 3 rings either without Dallas' elite defenses, HoF QB and the other HoFer catching passes thrown by that QB to give them an elite offense.

I remember being so frustrated with Ingram cause one week, he would absolutely tear it up, usually against some garbage team. Then he would play mediocre the next week when your expectations are high.

It took him until 2016 to have a break out year and even then, he was frustrating that year too. The Seahawks game where he got benched for fumbling twice was a highlight. He had some of his best games against trash teams, but didn't quite come up in the big games where we needed him. Most of his best games in 2016 game against the crap teams we played (49ers, Rams, Cardinals, Bucs).

Another thing I remember was that it seemed that any time he had a fumble in a game, he'd follow it up with another fumble later on in the same game.

He did absolutely nothing in the 2017 playoffs and I bring this up because the 2017 offense relied almost entirely on a smashmouth style heavy rush attack (like the 2018 team, in 2017 we didn't have enough weapons on offense to engage in shootout games, so we relied on running the ball). It was Kamara having all the big plays against Minnesota, helping us come back into that game. I don't remember Ingram doing anything significant either in this past year's playoffs.

I don't think he's going to be a huge loss for us.

vpheughan

As Raul Julia said in The Gumball Rally "........What's a behind me, is not important!!! Take that rear view mirror, AKA Could'a, Would'a Should'a and toss it away!!

jeanpierre

When I'm trying to do business, and it's very delicate, there's tension(s), or things are problematic - I do not text, I call till I speak to someone...

Today's generation hides what they're truly feeling, more so this generation avoids awkwardness, loss of face, out of fear of conflict that leads to public embarrassment...

I've dismissed contract employees after two warnings of texting me re: no show, not being available to work - you call me...

Worse part is I'm reputed of being too laid back with part time help and letting them no show for far less conflicting excuses that my generation were allowed...

My Dad's generation when returning to work had to be backed in out of an ambulance, from the front, with injuries recently triaged...

Education today really needs to account for technological changes in our lives and folks apparently need to be taught manners and ethics of texting, including a back-door lesson in avoidance...

Blame should rest with both - If Mark were that important, and with the resources Payton has at his disposal, Payton should have gone to Ingram and confronted Ingram...

Ultimately, most of it is on Mark. Ingram should've answered the phone and spoke to Payton directly as that access, contact is not restricted with potential returning free agents...

It's not that my way is the right way, I just make the right way my way...