The move is bold and, in my opinion, encouraging. But it is also reminiscent of some of the personnel mistakes that the New Orleans Saints have made in recent years.
When I say I find the move encouraging, I mean simply that the move indicates that Payton and the front office believe the roster has the potential to improve more dramatically than it would with Byrd. It means that their envisioned 2017 roster is even further removed from 2016.
Assuming the Saints designate Byrd as a post-June 1st cut, the move saves them $7.8 million dollars against the cap in 2017.