Former Chiefs safety Kurt Coleman signs with New Orleans Saints

Former Kansas City Chiefs safety Kurt Coleman signed a new three-year deal with the New Orleans Saints before free agency started.

The New Orleans Saints are trying to get a leg up on free agency as they bolster their secondary with the announced signing of safety Kurt Coleman. The former Kansas City Chiefs safety inked a three-year contract, per Nick Underhill, Saints beat writer for the Advocate.

Coleman’s deal is reportedly worth $18 million over the life of the deal for an average of $6 million per season. He was recently let go by the Carolina Panthers after playing for them for the last three seasons.

Coleman came on strong with the Chiefs and earned a nice contract with the Panthers in free agency after putting up 37 total tackles and 3 interceptions in part-time duty. The solid play earned him a starting role in Carolina where he really showed a knack for making plays on the ball, generating 7 interceptions his first year and another 4 in 2016. Last season, however, he had zero turnovers in 12 starts for the Panthers, a serious letdown after forcing 16 total turnovers the previous three years combined.

For a player who will be 30 when the season begins, the Saints are hoping last year was an anomaly of sorts and that Coleman still has plenty left in the tank. The recent history is there to show such productivity, however, and he’s a decent bet if the price is right, especially since Kenny Vaccaro is a free agent.

Coleman entered the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles as the team’s seventh round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. He has appeared in 116 career games in his NFL career.