Donald Manley

Sean Payton reveals the late night text exchange he had with Alvin Kamara after watching him coast through a practice, and explains how he challenged him to raise his standards if he really wanted to make the Hall of Fame “I text Alvin one night, Kamara, and he’s one of my favorite players, right? And it was a Wednesday. He had a tendency, he was so gifted, he could get bored. And then if he got bored, he might drop an easy pass.” “And he had one of those Wednesdays. In season, Wednesday is the first day of practice. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. And it was just a nonchalant day, and yet for someone who was so elite.” “I text him that night and I said, ‘Hey, I want to ask you a question. Can I coach you hard?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, why are you tripping?’ And I said, ‘Well, look, we’ll talk about it tomorrow.’” “And then, you know, it bothered him a little because he had to go to sleep. And then the next day he sees me in pre-practice, and I said, ‘Just let me explain this. Do you see yourself being in the Hall of Fame someday?’ And he said, ‘Yeah.’” “And I said, ‘All right. Well, I don’t think your trajectory right now is steep enough to make that goal happen. I think your trajectory is five Pro Bowls, a couple All-Pro teams, phenomenal career, all-time leading rusher, but I think your trajectory, and I think your practices have to be.. And then he starts complaining to me, and I said, ‘I thought you told me I could coach you hard.’ And then, you know, it hit him.”