Mark Ingram hasn't exactly had a yardage countdown running, but he won't pretend to be unaware of the significant career and Saints benchmark that now sits just a matter of feet away.
That number, of course, is Deuce McAllister's franchise record for career rushing yards, which he's held since surpassing George Rogers' total in the 2005 season. Ingram said it's an honor to approach the mark, and he called back to the support from the former Saints running back early in his career as a key part of what helped him have such a long and effective NFL career.
"Even in the beginning times, whether it was role, whether it was injury or whatever it may have been. When things weren’t as, you know, ideal as you’d want them to be as a first-round pick," Ingram said of McAllister, who retired after the 2009 season and is now WWL Radio's color analyst on Saints gamedays. "He was always one of those guys who was encouraging and supportive of me. So I’m thankful for him."
After a pair of productive games alongside Alvin Kamara, Ingram is just 19 yards shy of the No. 1 spot. Upon his departure he was just 90 yards shy of the record.
Kamara is no slouch on the rushing list in his own right, surpassing Pierre Thomas earlier this season to move in No. 5. At his current rushing pace, he could potentially reach the 6,000-yard plateau in the 2023 season.
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THE RECORD
Career rushing yards (after of Week 9)
1. Deuce McAllister, 6,096
2. Mark Ingram, 6,077
3. George Rogers, 4,267
4. Dalton Hilliard, 4,164
5. Alvin Kamara, 3,870
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"Obviously when I left I knew I was close, and that sucked. ... I didn’t know when I’d come back, if I’d come back or how I’d come back," he said. "Always figured that maybe I'd have a chance to come back. You never know, the league is crazy.”
Even in a supporting role, Week 10 would've likely been the record-setter. But with Kamara's status in doubt after missing multiple practices with a knee injury, the record could potentially come on a day he has a featured role. Ingram would have preferred to see the record set at the Caesars Superdome in front of the home crowd, but he's ready for it either way.
If that comes with a three-down workload, even better. Ingram is a three-down runner, he says. He'll do whatever it takes to help the team win, but it's a workload he knows he can handle. He went so far as to say he's actually a better runner in his 11th NFL season than he was when he departed in 2019. He spent two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and the start of the 2021 season with the Houston Texans before a trade that brought the Saints' first round pick from 2011 back home.
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"I feel like I move better when I’m running the ball. I feel like I can still catch the ball running routes. I feel like a complete back, picking up pass-pro. I can do all three downs, like I always could," Ingram said. "It's just experience. Experience, successes, failures. Good games, bad games. Good reps, bad reps. Just all of those kind of compound over time. … I just feel like I know exactly what I need to do to go out there and play at a high level, and do the best that I can to help us win.”
But things haven't always been that way. Ingram admitted to being frustrated at times with the committee approach and crowded Saints backfield early in his career, coming in as a highly touted first-round draft selection, a Heisman winner and national champion during his ascendant time in college with Alabama.
McAllister's guidance played a big role, as Ingram said. And the current record-holder has made it clear he won't be sad to watch the record fall. That's the point of records, of course. Even if McAllister's playing career bio will need a minor update, he's still got a few other franchise records yet to be taken down. Some of those include the single-game record for yards from scrimmage (237 vs Falcons, 2003), the single-season record for total yards from scrimmage (2,157 in 2003) and career rushing attempts (1,429).
"It’ll be an honor to be able to get the yardage to top that record," Ingram said. "He set the bar, set the standard, and we’re just trying to elevate it.”
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