KendreMiller

News: 20 hours agoMiller (hamstring) still isn't practicing, and coach Dennis Allen said Wednesday that it's "challenging" and "hasn't gotten easier" for the running back to make the team without practicing, Patrick Magee of the New Orleans Advocate reports.

Spin: Allen essentially doubled down on his comments from late July, when he was asked about Miller and told reporters, "it's hard to make the team from the training room." The Saints are unlikely to actually cut a 22-year-old that they took in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but there's no denying the criticism has dampened Miller's fantasy outlook for the upcoming season, with thoughts of forcing a timeshare/committee replaced by concerns the young RB might be stuck behind both Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams. Miller was recovering from an MCL injury when the Saints drafted him last spring, and he then suffered a minor knee sprain in mid-August and a hamstring injury a few weeks later. After that, a high-ankle sprain kept him out for seven straight games in November/December before he returned for Week 18 and took 13 carries for 73 yards and a TD. Miller's performance in the season finale led to optimism in fantasy circles, but much of that seems to have faded since he suffered a hamstring injury during the first practice of training camp and was subsequently criticized by Allen. Miller has now missed more than three weeks of practice and is about to miss a second straight preseason game.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Injuries derailed Miller's rookie season and he made it through only eight games, finishing with 41 carries, 156 yards and a touchdown. The TCU product should come into his sophomore season in a much healthier state, but he'll still have to deal with Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams in the backfield. He's only worth a late-round flier.