Wednesday morning, New Orleans Saints starting strong safety Marcus Maye was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a firearm, according to Saints analyst Nick Underhill.

Maye was slated to begin the season along with Tyrann Mathieu as arguable the best safety duos in the NFL. In the matter of three days, the secondary as a whole suddenly looks very different.

Earlier this week, New Orleans traded safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to the Philadelphia Eagles. Gardner-Johnson was coming off of a solid year, but he and the team were not going to be able to come to a contract agreement. So, the Saints traded him and a seventh-round pick for fourth and fifth round picks. Now it appears the Saints might be down two safeties.

Marcus Maye responded through his attorney after the news broke.

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“Marcus vehemently denies the allegation from a motor vehicle incident, and looks forward to defending himself when all the facts come out.”

This is not the first time Maye has found himself in trouble with the law. He was arrested in February 2021 for DUI while still a member of the New York Jets. There have been multiple postponements in that case, but it is expected to be settled this fall. Maye could very easily face a suspension from that incident.

Needless to say, being arrested again for potentially more serious crimes is not a good look. It is not clear whether or not Maye broke the personal conduct policy with the NFL until more facts come out.

This is a developing story with more information to come.