Latest / AFR Saints / Are Saints Set To Release Tyrann Mathieu? | Does The Move Make Sense For New Orleans?

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Are Saints Set To Release Tyrann Mathieu? | Does The Move Make Sense For New Orleans? · AFR Saints

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  Speaker 1: AFR on Demand is brought to you by Breck Golf.
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  Speaker 1: full round. Book your tea time today. Golf dot Breck
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: dot org. Golf dot Breck dot org. There was a
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  Speaker 1: report over the weekend that the New Orleans Saints could
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  Speaker 1: very well be prepared to cut dies with Tyron Matthew.
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  Speaker 1: There's a that is obviously obviously going to elicit a
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  Speaker 1: very strong reaction from this fan base for some very
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  Speaker 1: strong reasons. Tony Pauline was the one who had the report.
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  Speaker 1: And when you're talking about Tyron, let's just start with
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  Speaker 1: the emotional tie that the fan base as with Tyrant.
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  Speaker 1: We all know his story. He's from New Orleans, he
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  Speaker 1: was a no star recruit until he was a four
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  Speaker 1: star recruit, and then he became a Heisman finalist, took
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  Speaker 1: the college football world by storm as the Honey Badger.
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  Speaker 1: A year later, he's off the team, he's arrested, his
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  Speaker 1: football career hanging in the balance, gets himself right drafted,
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  Speaker 1: and we know what's happened. He's changed his life. He
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  Speaker 1: has a family, he's done outreach programs for kids to
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  Speaker 1: avoid the pitfalls the path he was going down, and
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  Speaker 1: he's managed a career now as he'll be thirty three
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  Speaker 1: in May. That is marvelous in the literal sense of
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  Speaker 1: the word, Like we marvel at what he's done, considering
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  Speaker 1: the depths at which he fell when he was arrested
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  Speaker 1: and kicked off the LSU team to where he is
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  Speaker 1: now and he's changed his life. It's incredible and we
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  Speaker 1: would all love to see Tyrant finished his career in
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  Speaker 1: New Orleans. As a matter of fact, last March a
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  Speaker 1: year ago, when he signed an extension with New Orleans,
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  Speaker 1: that was the question, like, does this allow you to
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  Speaker 1: finish your career and retire as a New Orleans Saint? Yeah?
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  Speaker 2: I hope so, you know, but I probably say, you
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  Speaker 2: know more than that, right, you know, I got another
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  Speaker 2: chance to help these guys win. You know, I probably
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  Speaker 2: see the last couple of years has you know, kind
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  Speaker 2: of been you know, underwhelming, you know, to say the
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  Speaker 2: least right. So to have another opportunity to suit back
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  Speaker 2: up with these guys, you know, help this whole city win,
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  Speaker 2: that means a lot to me. So I'm excited about
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  Speaker 2: that opportunity.
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  Speaker 1: Unfortunately that didn't happen. They were not very good this
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  Speaker 1: year and they don't really appear close to winning. Maybe
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  Speaker 1: he could be part of getting them back on on
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  Speaker 1: a winning path. But during the Super Bowl week, Tyrone
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  Speaker 1: said that he hoped to play maybe a couple of
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  Speaker 1: more seasons. We'll see if he gets there. We'll see
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  Speaker 1: if it happens in New Orleans. So there's the emotional compartment.
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  Speaker 1: The emotional part of this where everyone who loves that
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  Speaker 1: team and loves the city and loves the state wants
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  Speaker 1: to see Tyron Matthew retire as a saint because he's
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  Speaker 1: representing the city and it's awesome. You remove the emotion
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  Speaker 1: and you just strip it down to football player production
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  Speaker 1: and contract, and we have a very different conversation. Pro
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  Speaker 1: Football Focus ranked coming into the twenty twenty four season
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  Speaker 1: the top safeties in the NFL, and they had Tyron
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  Speaker 1: Matthew ranked the tenth best safety in the NFL coming
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  Speaker 1: into this year. If you just look at Pro Football
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  Speaker 1: Focus the grades after this season, Tyron Matthew graded one
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  Speaker 1: hundred and fifth out of one hundred and seventy strong
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  Speaker 1: safeties in the NFL. Now, his snap count was nineteenth
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  Speaker 1: and his three interceptions was twelve. But if you're just
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  Speaker 1: looking at the overall grade, a strong safety see graded
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  Speaker 1: out a one hundred and fifth out of one seventy.
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  Speaker 1: I say it all the time with Pro Football Focus.
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  Speaker 1: It is a metric. It is not the metric. It's
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  Speaker 1: not the only thing to consider. It's just some thing
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  Speaker 1: to consider. But you can also look at the objective data.
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  Speaker 1: Three years in New Orleans. In year one, Tyron Matthew
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  Speaker 1: had ninety one tackles. That was in twenty twenty two.
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  Speaker 1: In twenty twenty three, he went down to seventy five.
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  Speaker 1: This year he went down to sixty two. And he
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  Speaker 1: hasn't missed a game. By the way, he's played in
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  Speaker 1: seventeen games each of the three years in New Orleans.
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  Speaker 1: Has not missed a game, So he's been durable. He's
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  Speaker 1: been available ninety one seventy five sixty two On the tackles,
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  Speaker 1: solo tackles sixty four fifty forty seven. You've seen a
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  Speaker 1: declining production each of his years in New Orleans. He
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  Speaker 1: hasn't really been a guy that's rushed the passer tremendously,
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  Speaker 1: but he had a sack his first year in no
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  Speaker 1: sacks the last two years TFLs he went from three
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  Speaker 1: to none to one this year. So you are seeing
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  Speaker 1: a guy that will turn thirty three in May, that undeniably,
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  Speaker 1: both in the objective and subjective metrics, has seen his
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  Speaker 1: productivity decline his years in New Orleans. There's a financial
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  Speaker 1: component of this conversation as well. Tyron Matthew, as we mentioned,
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  Speaker 1: did sign a contract extension a year ago, and so
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  Speaker 1: when you look at Tyron's contract, he is on the
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  Speaker 1: books this year. His cap hit is thirteen excuse me,
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  Speaker 1: his cap hit this year is eleven point three million
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  Speaker 1: dollars eleven point three one seven million. If they were
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  Speaker 1: to cut Tyron Matthew, his dead cap number would be
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  Speaker 1: thirteen point eight million. So you're looking at a situation
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  Speaker 1: where after the extension last year, and they had avoidable
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  Speaker 1: years to the end like they always do, to sort
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  Speaker 1: of kick the can down the road, so to speak.
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  Speaker 1: But his cap hit this year is eleven three the
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  Speaker 1: dead number is thirteen to eight, meaning if Tyron Matthew's
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  Speaker 1: on your team, it cost you eleven three If you
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  Speaker 1: cut him, it cost you thirteen point eight million. Now,
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  Speaker 1: they could do the whole post une one designation, but
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  Speaker 1: you know that doesn't I mean again, it's what wouldn't
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  Speaker 1: even matter because it's going to cost you more for
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  Speaker 1: him not to be on your team than to be
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  Speaker 1: on your team. So there's not really a financial benefit
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  Speaker 1: to cutting him or releasing him. It would specifically be
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  Speaker 1: do you think that this player isn't good enough to
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  Speaker 1: help you anymore? And that's a roster spot that could
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  Speaker 1: be better utilized with a younger, less expensive player, and
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  Speaker 1: you would eat the cap hit. When you look at
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  Speaker 1: the roster, the only safeties you got right now are
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  Speaker 1: Tyron Ugo, Amadi, Jordan Howden, j T. Gray. Now, you
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  Speaker 1: signed Will Harris last year in free agency to a
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  Speaker 1: one year deal. He played a lot for you, but
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  Speaker 1: he's an unrestricted free agent. So Will Harris could go
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  Speaker 1: play for somebody else this year, could sign somewhere, You
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  Speaker 1: could resign him and go somewhere else. The point is
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  Speaker 1: you don't have a ready made, plug and play, ready
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  Speaker 1: to go option at safety but maybe that's the position
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  Speaker 1: you target in free agents here. Maybe that's what they're
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  Speaker 1: thinking in the draft. I don't know, but it's a
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  Speaker 1: credible source reporting that Tyron very likely is uh or not.
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  Speaker 1: I shouldn't say very likely. I shouldn't say very likely
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  Speaker 1: that the Saints are considering releasing Tyron Matthew. But the
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  Speaker 1: only reason that makes sense is they just see a
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  Speaker 1: declining player that isn't worth the roster spot anymore. And
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  Speaker 1: if that's where they are, that's a tough pill to swallow.
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  Speaker 1: But the in comes for everybody Tyron looked. Tyron isn't
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  Speaker 1: on the back nine of his career. Like he's pulling
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  Speaker 1: up to the clubhouse and it's been amazing and we're
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  Speaker 1: all gonna we're all gonna stand in applaud when he's done,
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  Speaker 1: what he's been able to do and what he'll do
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  Speaker 1: in the next phase of his life. But the end
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  Speaker 1: for Tyron is near. If it's this year, if it's
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  Speaker 1: next year, whenever it may be. How much longer he
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  Speaker 1: wants to play, I don't know. But if they cut him,
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  Speaker 1: it's it's not a financial thing. If they cut him,
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  Speaker 1: it is specifically the Saints organization looking at the player
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  Speaker 1: and saying you can no longer help us win. That
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  Speaker 1: spot has to go to somebody younger. And if that happens,
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  Speaker 1: it'll suck and it'll be a really tough pill to swallow,
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  Speaker 1: but it might be where the Saints are and get
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  Speaker 1: that decision sooner than later. My personal opinion on the
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  Speaker 1: matter is Tyron's still a starting caliber player in the NFL,
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  Speaker 1: and if it's gonna cost you more to cut it
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  Speaker 1: then to have him on the roster, I want that
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  Speaker 1: veteran and that locker room guy on my team, especially
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  Speaker 1: with a new head coach trying to establish order. Give
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  Speaker 1: me good locker room guys, and Tyron is undeniably that.
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  Speaker 1: So even just for that, I think it's worth having
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  Speaker 1: him around for another season. And then you assess after
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  Speaker 1: the twenty twenty five season. But I'll get to make
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  Speaker 1: that decision. Who knows what the Saints are actually thinking.
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  Speaker 1: One will watch as the league years set to begin
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  Speaker 1: here in a couple of weeks.