The New Orleans Saints brought back a hometown hero on Monday, signing All-Pro safety Tyrann Mathieu, per multiple reports.
The parameters of the deal are unknown at this time.
An LSU product and New Orleans native, Mathieu spent the last three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, continuing to cement his place as one of the top ballhawks at his position.
Mathieu posted 13 interceptions over three seasons to go with 213 tackles, three sacks, and four fumble recoveries. His first year with the Chiefs also included a Super Bowl title that saw him post 18 tackles and three passes defended during the playoffs.
The three-time Pro Bowler began his career with the Arizona Cardinals — taken in the third round in 2013 — where he played five years before a one-year stopover with the Houston Texans.
At 29 years old, he is already a three-time Pro Bowler, a three-time All-Pro, and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-2010s Team.
While the Chiefs were believed to be a favorite to retain Mathieu, it came down to the Saints and Philadelphia Eagles in the end after Kansas City signed Justin Reid earlier in free agency.
This is an enormous get for the Saints, who desperately needed a safety after losing starters Marcus Williams and Malcolm Jenkins this offseason. They supplemented one of those losses earlier by bringing on Marcus Maye — though the addition of Mathieu bolster’s New Orleans’ secondary.
It continues to be a new age for the Saints organization after the departure of head coach Sean Payton (retirement). At the NFL Draft, they selected a wide receiver in Ohio State’s Chris Olave — which was the first time since 2014 and the fourth time in the last 20 years that they drafted a wide receiver in the first round.
The organization also built a reputation of not drafting LSU products, one that general manager Mickey Loomis addressed in 2019.
“Look, there’s a lot of good LSU players in the league and guys that we have coveted,” Loomis said (h/t NOLA.com). “It’s kind of the luck of the draw in the draft. At the time that we are picking, we don’t necessarily have them on our board or they got taken before.
“There’s a lot of circumstances that arise that causes us not to have an LSU player. It’s not because we don’t think they’re good players. That’s for sure.”
While it’s not a draft pick, Mathieu’s acquisition will at least stall the momentum of such a conspiracy.
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