Titans add safety Kenny Vaccaro after losing Jonathan Cyprien for the season
Former Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro has agreed to a deal with the Tennessee Titans, filling the void left by Jonathan Cyprien’s season-ending ACL tear. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport was the first to report the news, and the team confirmed the transaction shortly thereafter.
#Titans add veteran safety Kenny Vaccaro (@KennyVaccaro4)
Roster Moves 📰 » https://t.co/owdLtzTCup pic.twitter.com/Azh1ifUk3S
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) August 4, 2018
Vaccaro spent five year with the Saints
The Saints drafted Vaccaro out of the University of Texas in the first round of the 2013 draft. Vaccaro immediately took hold of a starting safety spot in his rookie year and started 14 games. He appeared in 15 games (14 starts) in his second year before starting all 16 games in 2015.
Over the past two seasons, Vaccaro, 27, continued to provide solid play in the New Orleans defensive backfield but missed nine regular season games. Last season, he tried to play through a significant groin injury before eventually ending the year on IR.
Over his five years in New Orleans, Vaccaro racked up 385 tackles, eight interceptions, 7.5 sacks and four forced fumbles.
Eric Reid could not make it to Tennessee
The Titans tried to bring in free agent safety Eric Reid, but he was unable to attend due to multiple canceled flights, per Rapoport.
#Titans planned to bring in S Eric Reid, but multiple flight cancellations kept him from coming in. When interest picked up from others in Kenny Vaccaro, Tennessee felt they needed to move to keep from losing him. They had good talks with Reid & he remains an option down the road
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 4, 2018
Reid filed a complaint against the Bengals earlier this offseason because he felt the team passed him over due to the fact that he kneeled during the national anthem. When Reid visited the Bengals, team owner Mike Brown peppered him with questions regarding his anthem behavior instead of his football abilities. Reid will remain a free agent in what has been a tough safety market.
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