The New Orleans Saints have placed the franchise tag on safety Marcus Williams, a source told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
The only thing surprising about the Saints using their franchise tag on Williams is that it reduces their salary-cap flexibility -- and they were already about $50 million over the projected cap to start this week. But the Saints made it a priority to keep Williams, and the franchise tag cost for safeties is much cheaper than other positions.
Williams, 24, has been a full-time starter at free safety since the Saints drafted him in the second round out of Utah in 2017.