Can the Saints bring Tyrann Mathieu home?
With the draft now done, the serious business of free agency gets going and insiders report that the Saints are aggressively pursuing Tyrann Mathieu.
The hopes and dreams of all of south Louisiana have been wrapped up in bringing our boys back home in glory. Especially Tyrann Mathieu. After being so egregiously and ignominiously let go by the Les Miles administration, the much-loved LSU Tiger was the only player on the field, on either team, that anyone in Baton Rouge cared about in Super Bowl LIV. Honey Badger was, is, and always has been adored in his home state. But like so many others, he had to go elsewhere to find redemption.
Now, it appears that there is a glimmer on the horizon. The New Orleans Saints failed to land a safety in the draft and are now expected, as reported by ESPN, to make an aggressive push toward signing Tyrann Mathieu.
With a defensive-minded head coach in Dennis Allen, and a long history of superb defensive squads, the Saints would seem like the natural home for the three-time Pro Bowl player. Added to the fact that both Marcus Williams and Malcolm Jenkins exited their lineup in the off-season, there is a gap to be filled.
The Saints picked up the outstanding Marcus Maye from the Jets in March, but with a niggling achilles injury and a DUI arrest, he may miss some play time.
With the addition of Mathieu to a defensive secondary that includes CJ Gardner-Johnson and PJ Williams could give them a leg up in their pass coverage schemes. And we shouldn’t have to wait long to see action on this front. The Saints have a healthy amount of cap space and with a lack of draft action by New Orleans, it appears that they may have simply been waiting for Monday’s 3 p.m. compensatory draft picks formula deadline to pass before making Tyrann Mathieu a serious offer.