When the New Orleans Saints signed star safety Jairus Byrd to a six-year contract worth $56 million in 2014, it was widely assumed he’d be a productive player right away and would be that missing piece to guide them to a championship.

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To say the Saints haven’t gotten their money’s worth would be a major understatement. He’s played in just 17 of a possible 32 games since joining New Orleans, and has one interception after racking up 22 in five seasons with the Buffalo Bills.

Just five of his 38 career passes defended have come in New Orleans, so it’s obvious that even when healthy, he hasn’t been the player this team had hoped for. They surrendered the most points in 2015, after all.

There’s a new defensive coordinator upcoming in Dennis Allen, and we all saw what happened last time the team made a change in that area. The Saints went from the NFL’s worst defense in 2012 to a top-five unit when Rob Ryan replaced Steve Spagnuolo.

So are they better off without Byrd, or does he deserve a shot to be useful with a new DC in charge?

Bleacher Report’s Russell S. Baxter listed his projections for the biggest player to be cut on each team, and sure enough, Byrd is his choice on the Saints. He acknowledges that though Byrd did restructure his contract, there are more than enough reasons to move on from him:

“Byrd’s two seasons in the Big Easy have been hard to swallow. A total of 17 games has added up to two takeaways. This was a player who came up with 27 turnovers in five seasons with the Bills. Rookie Vonn Bell could be the heir apparent at free safety quite quickly.”

Very interesting points, but I feel if the Saints were to release Byrd, they would have done so in the offseason to clear more room for other free agents. There’s no doubt that 2016 is a make-or-break year for Byrd, but do expect him to be on their final 53-man roster come Week 1.

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