Kendre Miller will be the first to tell you how frustrating his first two seasons in the NFL have been since the Saints picked him in the third round out of TCU.
So much so, in fact, that he opted to change his jersey number from 25 to 5 heading into Year 3. The reason? Well, none, really, it's just time for a fresh start.
"I was injured in 25 and it was just like, I just wanted to start something new," Miller told me. "I feel good, finally, kind of just want to leave that old mojo in the past and just kind of move on.”
Moving on will require some positive results in the health department, and that's what he's got this season for the first time in his career (a sentence I write while knocking on several pieces of wood). Whatever happens from here, he's already further into an uninterrupted offseason than he has been in any other season.
Before his rookie season even started he had a substantial recovery process from a knee injury suffered in his final collegiate game. He worked back and got on the field in the preseason, but he was wearing a knee brace and just never looked, or more importantly felt, like his old self. There were continued knee problems that limited his availability, then a major ankle sprain that kept him out for seven games. He returned and played through discomfort in the Week 18 finale and had the best game of his career to date (13 carries for 73 yards and a TD) in a win over the Falcons.
Related
It was a positive way to enter the offseason, but issues remained with the ankle. It was a busy offseason trying to get right, but then came training camp and a significant hamstring injury on the first set of individual drills. Miller didn't return in camp and started the season on IR. He came back for xx games before landing on IR again, though he disputes whether that needed to happen, and didn't return until Darren Rizzi was the head coach and promised a clean slate. That lasted until a Week 14 concussion ended yet another season early.
This time around there are no such lingering issues. He's slimmed down to the range of 215-218, at which he intends to play, and he's looked quick and effective over the first week of training camp practice.
"I feel normal now, finally," Miller said. "It’s the most healthy I’ve been ever since I’ve been in the NFL. It’s just kind of been like a sped up process, kind of since I’ve been here, so I never was like 100% like all the way, but ... I’ve put in some work in the offseason and got my body back right and I feel great right now.”
If he can stay on the field, expectations are that he'll deliver. It's for that reason he likely stands to benefit the most from new Pro Performance Director Ted Rath and the new staff's focus on rest, recovery and a very specific approach to practice work. That focus goes down to as granular a level as tracking the number of steps a player takes in each practice, and shutting them down when they reach a particular threshold.
"It’s a big, big difference. … I feel so fresh," Miller said. "Llike right now it doesn’t feel like we practiced three days because he takes care of us, Kellen and Ted, they take care of us really well."
He'll likely need that to continue as he battles for a roster spot with a talented group and a mix of young players and veterans behind Alvin Kamara. It's a RB room that includes established players like Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Cam Akers, as well as rookies in 6th round pick Devin Neal and UDFA Marcus Yarns. There's also the intriguing Velus Jones Jr., a converted WR with 4.3 speed.
“I love it. … We’re making each other better every day and … it’s just a blessing to be out there grinding with them every day," Miller said. "We’ve got a loaded running back room right now.”
It's a battle that will likely stretch well into the preseason, but Miller's talent can and should set him apart -- if he's able to show it on a consistent basis. So far, so good.