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New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton has confirmed that running back Mark Ingram is not expected to take part in any of the team’s organized team activities until the mandatory veteran minicamp in June.
Ingram, who was recently suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the league’s performance-enhancing substance policy, has not appeared for the team’s voluntary offseason workouts. He is in the final year of his contract and is angling for a new deal, which the team does not appear to be in any rush to give him.
“He and I spoke, so it wasn't a surprise to us that he's not here,” Payton told Mike Triplett of ESPN. “I don't agree with it. But it is optional, and that's his choice.”
Ingram is coming off the best season of his career in 2017 as he ran for a career-high 1,124 yards and 12 touchdowns last season. He and rookie Alvin Kamara took the league by storm as they became the first running back teammates in NFL history to both top 1,500 yards from scrimmage in the same season.
The Saints have said that they don’t intend to add a veteran running back to the roster to take up Ingram’s spot during his suspension. DeMarco Murray and Adrian Peterson are two high-profile names that are still available to them in free agency.
Instead, the team will turn to their young running backs in Trey Edmunds, Jonathan Williams and sixth-round pick Boston Scott to back up Kamara while Ingram is out for the first quarter of the season.
