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Tramon Williams visiting New Orleans Saints

By Stanford Crissey

January 18, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Green Bay Packers cornerback Tramon Williams (38) walks to the locker room following the 28-22 loss against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
January 18, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Green Bay Packers cornerback Tramon Williams (38) walks to the locker room following the 28-22 loss against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Packers cornerback Tramon Williams will be in New Orleans to visit the Saints

Mardi Gras was weeks ago, which means there’s only one reason Tramon Williams would be in New Orleans tonight: the Saints are trying to sign him.

The longtime Packers cornerback is visiting the Saints, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter:

It’s unclear what the Saints’ offseason plan is; the Jimmy Graham trade was shocking, but it doesn’t tell us much about what kind of team the Saints are building. The team’s disappointing 6-10 season must have sounded some alarm bells in the front office, but a rebuild is unlikely, and they clearly need some defensive help. That’s where Williams comes in.

Williams, 31, has been a standout corner for the Packers for years; the team signed him in 2006 as an undrafted free agent, and he worked his way up the depth chart, becoming the starter opposite Charles Woodson in 2009. Williams was a Pro Bowler in 2010, and teamed up with Woodson to make one of the best cornerback pairings in the league. As Woodson began to age, Williams took over the role as the team’s ace corner, and has paired up well with Sam Shields the last few years.

The Saints have the promising Keenan Lewis on one side, and a whole lot of nothing on the other, so it makes sense that they’re going after free agent cornerbacks. What they might not be able to do, however, is pay said cornerbacks. New Orleans is currently $3 million over the salary cap, even after cutting Pierre Thomas and Curtis Lofton–the Graham trade was partially made to save the team money in the future, but they actually lose money from the trade in 2015. There are still plenty of candidates to be cut on the roster (Marques Colston, who’s been a shell of his former self lately, would be one obvious candidate), but the Saints would still need to fill the rest of their roster. It’s easy to see them getting outbid for Williams’ services if a team like the Browns or the Raiders comes along with loads of cap room and makes Williams a much better offer.

Money aside, Williams makes sense for a New Orleans team that has been one of the league’s worst defenses two of the past three years. The Saints wouldn’t be asking him to be a shutdown corner–they’re not trying to build Williams Island; they’re just hoping someone will put up some resistance to opposing receivers, especially with Julio Jones and Mike Evans on the schedule four times combined.

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