Here's what Justin Simmons is looking for in his Saints visit
It's been a minute since the New Orleans Saints hosted a trendy name in free agency on a visit, but Justin Simmons is meeting with the team on Wednesday. He'll take a physical and sit down with coaches to discuss their vision for him on their team. He'll also have an opportunity to compare their contract offer with what his agent recommends he seek.
And we know what Simmons is looking for in these talks, per NFL insider Josina Anderson.
"Consummation on a deal will come down to Simmons’ comfort with how he’d be utilized and if the team can meet his camp’s financial mark," Anderson reported. So he's looking for clarity in his role on defense -- would he be starting, and where? In the box, over the top, or moving around from one play to the next?
And, most critically, the money must make sense. Depending on where you look the Saints have somewhere between $11 million and $14 million in salary cap space, so they can afford to make a competitive offer. We've seen veteran safeties with comparable resumes to Simmons agree to these deals in recent weeks:
Quandre Diggs: One year, $3 million
Adrian Amos: One year, $1.2 million
Eddie Jackson: One year, $1.5 million
Jamal Adams: One year, $1.2 million
That's a lot of Pro Bowls to be signed near-minimum deals, but the safety market has been depressed this summer by teams refusing to pay more than that. We'll see where Simmons lands. He's got the strongest resume and the best game tape of the bunch, so he has grounds to task for more money. But the Saints could offer something like a $5 million base and probably outbid their competition. We'll see how this develops.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Here's what Justin Simmons is looking for in his Saints visit