The Saints now have two Marcus Williams‘. The team is signing the fifth-year jounreyman cornerback, a source told Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate (Twitter link). Williams came into the league as an undrafted free agent back in 2014, signing with the Jets. He made an impact right away, starting eight games as a rookie.
He continued to play a large role in New York over the next couple of seasons, and the team valued him highly. When he was a restricted free agent in 2017, the Jets placed a second round tender on him. Despite paying him $2.75MM under the tender, he quickly fell out of favor and was waived just a few weeks into the 2017 season.
The Texans claimed him off waivers, and he appeared in ten games for them, notching 12 tackles in a reserve role. After the season, he signed with the Cardinals, but was released back in May. Across his four seasons in the league, Williams has played in 49 games, including 15 starts, and racked up 89 tackles, ten interceptions, and 27 passes defended.
Signed this late in the offseason, Williams will be fighting an uphill battle to earn a roster spot with the Saints. New Orleans was apparently looking for some secondary depth, also signing safety Robert Nelson according to Underhill (Twitter link). It’s a nice add at this point in the season for the Saints, as Williams has always shown good ball skills, compiling an impressive amount of interceptions and pass breakups on limited playing time.