Saints Not Expected to Use Franchise Tag on Marcus Williams
The Saints are going to have to put their best efforts into retaining Marcus Williams ahead of the new league year starting on March 16. According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, New Orleans is not expected to use the franchise tag on their starting free safety.
Fowler adds that the team would prefer a long-term deal for Williams. The Athletic's Katherine Terrell also confirms the report for Williams not being tagged, and added that Terron Armstead won't be either.
Going back to last offseason, the belief from Mickey Loomis was always to get a long-term contract in place for Marcus Williams. The team has done a good job keeping the bulk of their 2017 draft class, locking up Marshon Lattimore, Ryan Ramczyk, and Alvin Kamara to long-term deals.
The franchise tag deadline is on March 8, and it'd come in around $13 million for 2022. According to Spotrac, Minnesota's Harrison Smith has the highest average salary ranking at $16 million, with Denver's Justin Simmons at $15.25 million. Getting Williams in the $13-16 million range annually feels like the goal, and this will be something to watch leading up to free agency.
If New Orleans can't get a deal done with Williams and he starts taking visits, then they could bring back P.J. Williams on a lesser deal and roll with that. However, we can't act like the drop off wouldn't be huge. We'll keep an eye on what transpires, but this would be a big loss for the team.
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