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‘I’m going to be out there’

Alvin Kamara didn’t take the field for the New Orleans Saints in their Week 4 trip to London, but he’s adamant that he’ll be back in Week 5.

“This week I’m feeling great, healthy, ready to roll,” Kamara said Wednesday, via ESPN’s Katherine Terrell. “So, I’m going to be out there.”

Kamara and the Saints (1-3) host the Seattle Seahawks (2-2) on Sunday and the running back’s reinsertion into the lineup will be a welcome one for a struggling New Orleans squad that has dropped three in a row.

Absent for his second game in three weeks when the Saints lost to the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday, Kamara is dealing with an injury to his ribs that he characterized as “weird.”

“It’s a weird injury,” the five-time Pro Bowler said. “There’s nothing really you can do for it. It’s one of those things you’ve got to kind of be easy with and one morning you wake up and it’s feeling terrible, the next morning you wake up and it’s feeling better. I kind of try to stay on the rehab and try to do everything I can. Obviously, there’s not too much I can do, but obviously I try to do everything I can to make it feel good and just promote and stimulate the healing.”

Kamara’s ribs have resulted in a questionable designation for the week running and he was limited in Wednesday’s practice. He’s also seemingly been limited on the field as his two games played have resulted in just 100 yards rushing, 19 yards receiving and no touchdowns.

Still, with the statuses of quarterback Jameis Winston and wide receiver Michael Thomas uncertain after they too missed Week 4, Kamara’s presence is all the more important.

New Orleans is 3-7 without Kamara in his career.

“The main thing for me is just being able to help the team any way I can,” Kamara said. “Physically, if there’s a time where I feel like I can’t do that, then I can’t be out there. The last thing I want to do is negatively impact the game. Just being all the way healthy and available on Sunday , that’s my biggest thing. So that’s why, obviously last week was kind of up in the air, didn’t go.”

But Kamara is resolute that he’ll return to action this week, adding he’ll play with extra padding on his ribs.

“Just protect it, be on the safe side rather than not and end up with another injury,” Kamara said. “We’re going to protect it and we’ll be good.”