New Orleans Saints Offseason Preview: Is the team safe at safety?

ATLANTA, GA - NOVEMBER 28: Vonn Bell #24 of the New Orleans Saints reacts after recovering a fumble along with teammates P.J. Williams #26 and Justin Hardee #34 during the second half of an NFL game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on November 28, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /

The dilemma with Bell

It remains to be seen how important Bell is to the Saints future. Rookie Chauncey Gardner-Johnson stepped in and was an impact player in 2019.

When the Saints drafted CGJ, it seemed to be their normal mantra of best player available. It didn’t seem that Bell’s job was on shaky ground. However, CGJ may make Bell somewhat expendable if his cost gets too high.

It’s hard to imagine the Saints letting Bell test the market too much, other than to get an idea of what others see as his value.

Bell is one of many safeties on the market, but he’s maybe the best in the box safety on the list. If they could re-sign him at a reasonable amount, I think that would be their preference. But I think they also will look to get CGJ on the field more often as well.

To that end, if Bell is going to cost them too much, it seems they’d let him walk and pick up another FA safety for cheaper while letting CGJ start.

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