Cover / Artwork » When Saints star running back Alvin Kamara walked

METAIRIE Rashan Gary Jersey , La. (AP) — out to Thursday’s minicamp practice wearing reserve quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s red practice jersey, teammates including Drew Brees were amused.They also found it fitting, given the dynamism and versatility Kamara has come to embody in his prolific first two NFL seasons.“He’s definitely a guy that could probably get out there and do it; that’s the scary thing,” Brees said of Kamara playing quarterback. “He’s such a phenomenal athlete — and he always talks about wanting to throw the ball.”Kamara rules out very little when it comes to what he might do next to provide a new wrinkle to New Orleans’ already prolific offense. He also sounds very open to trying new things — whether in his training, diet or on the field.“That’s where the anxiety comes from with me; it’s not a bad anxiety, but a good anxiety — like, I’m anxious to see: What else?” Kamara said. “Where else could I line up? What else could I do? How else could I be successful?”Kamara has been one of New Orleans’ top two rushers and receivers in each of his two pro seasons since the Saints made him a third-round draft choice out of Tennessee. He was the Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2017, when he had 1,554 yards and 13 touchdowns from scrimmage (728 yards and eight TDs rushing, 826 yards and five TDs receiving) to go with a 106-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. And there was no sophomore slump. Last season, he gained 1,592 yards and scored 18 TDs from scrimmage (883 yards and 14 TDs rushing, 709 yards and four TDs receiving).Improving on that kind of production year after year is a challenge, but Kamara says he’s determined to adopt offseason goals that give him a chance to do so — and to evolve as a player.“Anything new, anything one of my teammates has to lend me, like some advice or somebody with some experience in the field of nutrition or strength or training — I try to take little gems from everybody http://www.packersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-darnell-savage-jr.-jersey ,” Kamara said. “Changing diets and looking for new things to get faster, stronger, get in better shape — I’m looking for all of it.”Certain unusual elements of Kamara’s offseason workouts have become sensations on social media.This offseason, he could be seen catching a three-pronged HECOstix with each hand while standing on a BOSU ball .Kamara describes his balance as “pretty elite,” and that was a workout designed to keep it that way.During the 2018 offseason, there was a popular video of the 5-foot-10, 215-pound Kamara pulling a Jeep attached to a harness around his waist while balancing weights on his shoulders.Meanwhile, Kamara has sought to emulate his record-setting quarterback’s mental approach to the game.“My rookie year — everybody says it was easy — I’m like, ‘Man, look, there was sometimes I was out there, I didn’t know what was going on,'” Kamara said. “I kind of took a step back and was like, ‘All right, well, if I want to be the best Elgton Jenkins Jersey , then I got to know what the best knows, and I think Drew is probably one of, if not the smartest people playing football right now.”Brees calls Kamara “inquisitive.”“There’s a level of awareness with him that I think that’s unique,” Brees said. “He picks up on things very quickly. I think that’s unique. And so then combine that with exceptional athletic skills and you get the player that he is.”Saints coach Sean Payton touts Kamara’s “real, real, exceptionally high football IQ” and even gave the running back a fidget spinner as a funny, friendly way of saying he realized Kamara might need something to occupy himself while coaches are explaining things to his teammates.“He can get bored with it, and that’s why we give him one of those,” Payton deadpanned.Perhaps this season, coaches could have Kamara spinning footballs instead.Payton, known as one of the NFL’s more inventive play designers, affirmed his belief in Kamara’s throwing ability, recalling a touchdown pass the running back threw at Tennessee out of a “wildcat” formation.The throw was “like a tight end pop pass that was pretty good,” Payton said.But the coach also stressed there’s good reason to avoid too much tinkering with the running and receiving plays Kamara has executed so well the past couple of seasons.“Some of the stuff he does extremely well now — that still sells,” Payton said. “That’s still really, really good.”Notes: Brees said missing two voluntary practices last week and one mandatory practice this week to testify in his lawsuit alleging fraud against a San Diego jeweler was “Very tough.” Brees added http://www.packersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-jace-sternberger-jersey , “Obviously I’m quarterback of his football team and I want to be with the team, but unfortunately there were things that were a bit out of our control that we had to take care of. So take care of that and take life as it comes.” EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Rookie free agent tight end CJ Conrad might be the biggest surprise at the New York Giants‘ training camp.The University of Kentucky product is catching passes at practice every day, has shown he can block and even got a couple of first-team reps with Eli Manning and the first team last week.Not bad for a guy who was sent home from the NFL scouting combine because doctors were concerned he might have a heart issue.Conrad didn’t. He saw a cardiologist and was told to have a yearly screening. Conrad did not specify the exact issue.It’s the last thing on his mind now. He has been making an impression and will look to continue doing that when the Giants open their preseason against the rival Jets at MetLife Stadium on Thursday night.“My expectations were to come in here and compete at the highest level I possibly could and get better every single day,” Conrad said Monday. “I feel like I have done that so far. I still have a ways to go but I feel like I am getting better every day. That’s the mindset you have to have and that’s what you have to do.”There is no doubt Conrad faces an uphill battle to make the roster.Evan Engram, a first-round draft pick in 2017, played really well last year. He had 45 catches for 577 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games after overcoming knee and hamstring injuries.Veteran Rhett Ellison, a good blocker, had 25 catches for 272 yards and a touchdown, while Scott Simonson had nine catches for 86 yards and a touchdown.Conrad wasn’t concerned with the Giants’ roster when he signed after the draft. He knew his chances of being drafted were not good after being sent home from the combine. He picked a team that did not draft a tight end this year.Coming out of Kentucky, Conrad was considered one of the most underrated tight ends in the country. He caught 30 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns in his senior year. The numbers weren’t eye-popping, but there was a reason for that.The Wildcats were a run-heavy team last season with Benny Snell Jr. rushing for 1,449 yards.“We were doing whatever it took to win the SEC and we were a program just trying to win games and change the program,” Conrad said. “We had a good running back and we really relied on our run game in the middle of the season.”Conrad understood his role and blocked. In fact, he liked it.“I found it fun over my years at Kentucky manhandling dudes and manhandling defenses,” he said. “It’s almost more satisfying to pancake someone than score your own touchdown.”Conrad had 80 catches for 1 Dexter Williams Jersey ,015 yards and 12 touchdowns in his career, the second-most receiving TDs for a tight end in school history.Conrad comes from an athletic family. His mother and father, Lois and Mike, played basketball at Tiffan University. His brother, Austin, plays football at Ohio University. His sister, Mackenzie, played softball at Akron and Coastal Carolina.The pickup games in the backyard were intense.“That’s where I get my competitive edge,” he said. “We got after each other, especially me and my brother.”Conrad said he just wants to keep working and improving.“Right now is football only,” Conrad said. “That’s my mindset and how I’m attacking it every day.”NOTES: OT Brian Mihalik left practice with a stinger. … LB Zak DeOssie and DB Michael Thomas were excused from practice to handle players’ union business. … WR Golden Tate will have the appeal of his four-game suspension for using an illegal substance heard on Tuesday. He used a fertility drug prescribed by a doctor. … DL B.J. Hill missed practice because of the birth of a son.