Ash Wednesday Purge

Bye, Jairus.

INDIANAPOLIS -- The New Orleans Saints will release safety Jairus Byrd when free agency opens on March 9, a source familiar with the situation confirmed Tuesday night.

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network was the first to report the news.

Byrd was due a base salary of $7.4 million in 2017, but was projected to count $11.2 million against the cap. He had three years remaining on a six-year, $54 million deal signed in 2014.

The pending release of Byrd signals $8 million in dead money, but the Saints pick up $3.2 million in cap space provided the move is not a post-June 1 designation, CBS sports contract/salary cap analyst Joel Corry said in a telephone interview.

Man we were so freaking excited when they went out and got Jairus.