No one has played more defensive snaps than Marcus Williams for Dennis Allen since the New Orleans Saints drafted him back in 2017, with Williams totaling 4,778 snaps — that’s more than Cameron Jordan (4,392), Marshon Lattimore (4,345), and everyone else. He’s exactly the type of ascending young talent, heavily familiar with the established system, that a team would like to hold onto.
But he’s headed out of town after agreeing to sign with the Baltimore Ravens on a five-year contract valued at $70 million, with $37 million in guarantees. Good for him. Williams has earned it after putting in years of hard work to recover from his gaffe in the playoffs his rookie year. From the Saints’ perspective, though, this might be a disaster. A lot of the continuity Allen was touted for when they promoted him to head coach is walking out the door.
The Saints don’t have an easy replacement for Williams on the roster. Safeties Malcolm Jenkins and C.J. Gardner-Johnson are both entering the final year of their contracts, and while they’re each very effective in their established roles neither of them have the range to hang back as the last line of defense like Williams.
