Tyrann Mathieu Signs with Saints, The Honey Badger is Coming Home to New Orleans
New Orleans is bringing home one of its favorite sons. On Monday, free agent safety Tyrann Mathieu and the New Orleans Saints agreed to a three-year deal worth $33 million ($18 million guaranteed). Mathieu spent the past three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and was the heart of their defense during their 2019 Super Bowl championship campaign.
The cover man, who perfected his craft on the city fields of St. Augustine High in central New Orleans, has been a career difference maker in every sense. He’s amassed 610 tackles, 26 interceptions, ten sacks and four forced fumbles in his nine seasons as a pro. The three-time All-Pro will return to the city that raised him, hoping to bring the Lombardi Trophy back to southeast Louisiana.
“The Honey Badger” is a blackhole in the secondary, eating up anything that gets remotely close. He has a nose for the ball that is unmatched by almost any other defender in the league. He’s been an absolute menace in the defensive backfield since his college days at LSU, where he earned his “Honey Badger” moniker for his vicious style of play and signature blonde mohawk. During his time with the Tigers, he bullied offenses into interceptions and fumbles, often capitalizing on his thefts with an electric return for touchdown.
Despite being a bit slighter than other defensive backs, the 5’9” 190-pound Mathieu has continued to use his natural instincts to make game changing plays all over the field. Fellow All-Pro cover man Richard Sherman says the following about Mathieu, "(He) is one of the most instinctual and gambling defensive backs I’ve ever seen, and he’s usually right. I’d compare him to Ed Reed in that regard.”
Reed, a fellow Louisiana native, is arguably the greatest safety of all time and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019. Could Mathieu follow in his footsteps one day?
The Baltimore Hall of Famer intercepted 64 passes in his career, a mark that Mathieu will not be able to match as he sits at 26 and counting. However, the Honey Badger already has more sacks (10 to six) and will almost certainly surpass Reed’s career tackle mark (646) this season with only 36 separating them. While Reed played more as a single-high safety, Mathieu often lines up in the box due to his ferocious run stopping ability and knack for blanketing backfield receivers. Both are Super Bowl champions, but Reed holds the edge in All-Pro appearances, as well as being able to call himself the 2004 Defensive Player of the Year and three-time league interception leader.
The New Orleans native may not have quite the career of the highly decorated Reed, but he’s certainly making his case for Canton and has definitely got some gas left in the tank. At 29, he’s looking as youthful as ever after intercepting nine passes over the last two seasons, the most in any two-season stretch during his NFL tenure. He’s also scored two of his three career touchdowns in that same time. He should be a huge factor in recently promoted Head Coach Dennis Allen’s defense when he is paired up with another new signing in the secondary, Marcus Maye. The Saints also have C.J. Gardner-Johnson returns at safety, who had career highs in sacks (two) and interceptions (three) last season.
Allen’s system, which will largely remain in place as he ascends from defensive coordinator to head coach, is a perfect match for Mathieu in almost every way. For starters, the Saints typically line up in nickel or dime formations, allowing one of their safeties to move down into the box as a pseudo-linebacker to match up with tight ends or stuff the run. This role was often filled last season by Malcolm Jenkins, who retired this offseason. Mathieu should excel in this capacity as he, much like Jenkins, is a ball magnet with a high motor.
Another intriguing aspect of the Saints defense is their “man-match” quarters scheme. This essentially means that DB’s are covering a single receiver unless specific criteria are met, in which case they shift to a zone to plug up holes in the throwing lanes. In this scheme, corners are Ziploc tight on the outside receivers while safeties are told to lurk in the middle of the field and encouraged to gamble on passes in crowded zones. And when it comes to gambling, Mathieu is a certified Las Vegas card shark.
He should find himself matched up on slot receivers quite a bit next year which bodes well for this New Orleans defense. When covering the slot last year, Mathieu allowed a league-low 45 yards and the second-worst opponent quarterback rating for any safety at 53.3 (QBR). It was also in this capacity that he hijacked all three of his interceptions last season, tied for the most by any player in slot coverage for 2021.
The stars seem to be aligning for Mathieu. A homecoming, a tailor-made system, a new crop of NFC South quarterbacks to harass. It all appears to be falling into place for the New Orleans made Super Bowl Champion. News of his signing has already energized the fanbase and former coaches believe that his impact on the field goes far beyond the numbers. Mathieu’s defensive coordinator in Kansas City, Steve Spagnuolo, said “He’s great to have. A guy like that, we all focus on what he does, the stats, gets interceptions, tackles and the whole thing. To me, one of the greatest things about having a guy like that is he makes the other 10 better. I truly believe that he does that with our unit because of the confidence that they have in him and the communication and plays he’s going to make, etc.”
The city of New Orleans will be buzzing in September, when they get their first glimpse of the Honey Badger in his hometown black and gold.
