#WhoDat? It's Mark Ingram

Former Heisman trophy winner and 2011 first-round pick Mark Ingram has not produced at a level commensurate with his resume. Simply put, he is not the feature back the New Orleans Saints had envisioned him becoming when they selected him 28th overall. Who's to blame?

It's hard to produce if you're not on the field. Ingram has only managed to put together two full seasons out of his six total. At some point the Saints have to account for his lack of durability, and understandably so. Part of accounting for that has been a reduced workload, particularly as seen in recent years. Since 2014, the Saints have employed a heavy committee at the running back position, consisting of guys like Pierre Thomas, C.J. Spiller, Tim Hightower and Travaris Cadet.

I'm not arguing against a healthy stable of running backs. However, outside of injury, Mark Ingram has demonstrated the ability to be a true feature back. As you can see below, his 4.3 YPC in 2014 has steadily improved to 5.1 YPC in 2016. He also has shown he can be a threat as a pass-catcher reeling in 50 receptions for 405 yards and 46 for receptions for 319 yards (and 4 touchdowns) in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Again I understand both 2014 and 2015 were not full seasons, though when he was on the field, he produced at a high level.

The above table, courtesy of Spotrac.com, helps show the difference between Ingram and other comparable running backs around the league. The stats shown come from the 2016 season. As you can see, Ingram's 46 percent snap rate is well below that of guys like McCoy, Gore and Miller, who all have snap rates at or above 55 percent. Ingram's 205 rush attempts is also the lowest in comparison to Miller (268), Gore (263), McCoy (234) and Forte (218). AND to top it off, Ingram played two more games than both Miller and Forte, and one more than McCoy. Despite his usage he is third on that list in rushing yards, second in receiving yards, and first in YPC.

More head-scratching is the latest offseason signing of running back Adrian Peterson paired with the drafting of Tennessee running back Alvin Kamara in the third round of the 2016 draft. First, Ingram is 27 years old and coming off both his healthiest and most productive season as a pro. I believe 2017 could have been a breakout year for Ingram if not for this now crowded backfield. Second, why sign an aging and injury-riddled Adrian Peterson? He's coming off almost a full season missed and at age 32 how much can he actually contribute? And if drafting a back was a legitimate consideration for the Saints, which evidently it was, the Adrian Peterson signing seems to only further muddle the situation.

Below I have put together some film highlighting Ingram's skillset. Some things to watch for include: His explosiveness. When Ingram finds a crease he hits it full throttle. His vision. In the film you can see he does a great job bouncing to the open hole and creating for himself. His strength, elusiveness and balance. This may well be what stood out the most for me when watching the tape. These three combined make him a tackle-breaking machine. He can make guys miss with quick jump cuts. He can roll over guys with his short stout frame. He falls forward on almost all of his runs. And his low center of gravity helps keep him upright.

Ingram's skillset is very similar to Tennessee's DeMarco Murray. Both have the traits listed above though do share the same weaknesses as well. Ingram won't be a constant homerun threat. He may surprise you here and there, but he doesn't have the breakaway speed to really burn defenses. He also is a victim of his vision at times trying to create too much, resulting in a failed play.

The Saints signed Mark Ingram to a four-year $16 million contract in 2015 with a potential out in 2018. His $4 million dollar average salary is the same as both Matt Forte and Frank Gore, who he greatly outperformed in 2016. Based off 2016 productivity, his pay should in theory be similar to that of Lamar Miller, whose average salary is $6.5 million per year. As you can see above, Ingram even makes less than guys like Latavius Murray, Giovani Bernard and Chris Ivory. Even more important than average salary is guaranteed money which, at signing, Ingrams contract included $6.1 million. For perspective this is less than Frank Gore ($6.5 million), C.J. Anderson ($7.6 million), Matt Forte ($9 million), Chris Ivory ($10 million) and Lamar Miller ($14 million). Given the Saints apparent non-committal approach to Ingram, perhaps he's a candidate for free agency in 2018. I believe his talent certainly justifies an average salary of $6 million with guarantees of at least $10 million for a multi-year contract. He's only 27 years old and still has a ton of tread left on those tires. If his health cooperates, he has the ability to thrive in a workhorse role.