What’s the Jaguars’ plan for Travis Hunter? Will the Chiefs be enjoyable once more? Tyrann Mathieu = Hall of Famer?

The sudden retirement of New Orleans Saints security Tyrann Mathieu ought to formally begin the clock on his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction. Earning three first-team All-Pro nods over his 12 NFL seasons, the “Honey Badger” loved a exceptional profession that noticed the previous third-round decide turn into a Super Bowl champion and some of the dynamic safeties in NFL historical past.

Mathieu, a member of the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 2010s, snagged probably the most interceptions (36) of any NFL participant from 2013 to 2024, whereas additionally ending within the high 5 amongst safeties in tackles (833, fifth), tackles for loss (45, fifth) and passes defensed (100, first) throughout that span. Oh, and he added 11 sacks for good measure. Simply put, he is one among this technology’s greatest multidimensional playmakers within the defensive backfield. From his instinctive performs on the ball to his knack for knocking it free, Mathieu remained the dominant “see ball, get ball” defender who initially burst on the scene as a Heisman Trophy finalist at LSU.

As a collegian, the 5-foot-9, 186-pouder defied the percentages, standing out as an undersized defender with unremarkable pace, due to his uncanny knack for making performs on the ball. While Mathieu’s substance-abuse issues overshadowed his playmaking expertise, the ultra-aggressive ballhawk confirmed evaluators that instincts trump athleticism on the subject of scouting safeties. Whether it was his capability to choose off passes on suggestions/overthrows or execute completely timed blitzes off the sting, Mathieu displayed the form of pure playmaking savvy that is laborious to seek out in a third-level defender.

Moreover, the LSU standout performed with the relentless power and fervour that defensive coordinators covet. From his unbridled enthusiasm after making a giant play to his relentless pursuit of the ball, Mathieu introduced next-level power to the sphere. That zest for the sport prompted the Arizona Cardinals and former GM Steve Keim to roll the cube on Mathieu regardless of crimson flags that might immediate some basic managers to take away him from the draft board.

“Just like I said when we drafted him, it was a risk,” Keim stated on “Schein On Sports” forward of Mathieu’s rookie season. “Now, every player you draft is a risk, whether it’s for skill, injury or off-field concerns. We had some off-the-field concerns about him. He’s answered the bell. He’s been a model citizen so far. Again, he has to stay focused and keep that trend going. The on-field stuff is as good as you can imagine. He is a ballhawk, playmaker; he’s tough as nails. The other night, (former Cardinals coach) Bruce (Arians) told me that he got his first live game action late first quarter, second quarter, played in the third, and they tried to take him out of the game and he didn’t even want to come out. He’s just a competitor. The guy said he sat out of football for a year, he waited long enough, he wants to be out on the field. He just has a unique, real uncanny way about playing the nickel and that slot, blitzing off the hash, doing different things in coverage. I think the NFL is going to see that Tyrann is the real deal.”