There really aren’t many veteran running backs available on the free agent market now.
An hour after news broke that Brian Westbrook has joined the 49ers, the Saints added their own veteran insurance in former Redskins running back Ladell Betts. (Both ESPN and NFL Network have the story.)
Betts doesn’t boast the track record of Westbrook, but he helps fill a roster spot vacated by Lynell Hamilton’s season ending injury. Betts, 31 this month, is coming off a torn ACL and MCL. We wouldn’t expect him to have much of a role barring injuries in front of him.
While Betts is 224 pounds, he doesn’t really fit the profile of a “big back” that many thought the Saints needed for short-yardage situations. Betts profiles more as a competent veteran that can handle a variety of situations without screwing anything up too badly.