Demise. taxes. There is a salary cap issue with the New Orleans Saints. These are some of the basic truths of life, and the Saints are still now over $42 million in the red as of this writing, so this season is no exception.
The Saints renegotiated cornerback Marshon Lattimore’s deal back in January, anticipating cap issues once more. By lowering his basic salary to $1.2 million and turning $13.79 million of it into an option bonus that may be exercised up to one week before to the start of the regular season, this decreased his 2024 cap hit by $11 million to $14.6 million and made it simpler to trade him.
Like a signing bonus, the cap hit for that bonus can likewise be dispersed over a number of years.
Cutting Lattimore will simply not benefit the Saints in any way, even if they decide to mark him as a post-June 1 cut. In any case, there is some intrinsic trade value in him, so that’s one method to at least earn something for him.
However, the Saints might incur up to $45 million in dead money if they traded him before June 1st and used the previously mentioned incentive. Permits the distribution of the dead money beyond June 1.
In his first five years with the Saints, Lattimore earned four Pro Bowls and was named Defensive Rookie of the Year.
As the Detroit Lions look to improve at cornerback this offseason, Lattimore appears to be a viable option. Head coach Dan Campbell was, of course, the Saints’ tight ends coach from 2016 to 2020. However, more directly connected to Lattimore, defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn was the Saints’ defensive backs coach during that same period. With a $2 million roster bonus tacked on and a prorated signing bonus, Lattimore has big salary cap hits in 2025 ($31.4 million) and 2026 ($28.55 million). That would be a huge consideration for any team that may want to trade for him, but details could be worked out in trade discussions to minimize that.
The following trade suggestion, from Drew Collings of Who Dat Dish, would send Lattimore to the Lions in a new Saints mock draft.
To sell Lattimore before June 1st and incur a significant amount of dead money, the Saints could want enough return for their draft selection. Perhaps the Lions’ first-round selection and their additional third-round pick from the T.J. Hockenson deal can help.
The only significance of the two sixth-round selections the Saints would give to the Lions in this scenario is that they would provide Brad Holmes with additional Day 3 draft money with which to potentially make trades.
Basically, if a deal were to occur prior to the draft, Lattimore would be acquired by the Lions for selections 29 and 73 in April’s draft.
However, do the Saints actually have the right to request the first-round pick? Any interested club, including the Lions, could simply wait until June 2 to complete a transaction.
A later selection and the 73rd pick? Select the 61st and 73rd slots this season? We may be discussing a trade right now to deliver the Saints 2024 draft selections in exchange for Lattimore. This year’s first-round selection is a reach and isn’t what New Orleans should be hoping to get in any potential deal with the Lions.
