Saints cut Johnathan Abrams, a projected starter at safety

Here’s another surprising move from the New Orleans Saints. The team released Johnathan Abrams on Tuesday as part of their roster cuts, but he had been a projected starter at safety before Will Harris pulled ahead in the last few weeks of training camp.

This may not be the end of the road. Abram won’t test waivers as a vested veteran and may return after roster cuts. Unless the Saints add more high-end help at safety, anyway. Their high-profile (and fruitless) pursuit of Justin Simmons suggests they’re at least open to making an upgrade.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that the Saints “want him back on the practice squad” while Nola.com’s Luke Johnson quotes a team source as saying “We will see” whether Abram re-signs once the dust settles.

If preseason snap counts and performance are any indication, it won’t be Jordan Howden starting next to Tyrann Mathieu. The second-year pro missed too many tackles and blew too many opportunities this summer for the Saints to lean on him in the fall. He’ll have to earn back that confidence from the coaching staff. Stay tuned as the team’s plans materialize here.