The New Orleans Saints are coming off a bounce-back season that resulted in a playoff appearance that has laid much reason for optimism about could lie ahead of the franchise. Much of this came behind an improved defense led by their stout secondary that is filled with young and promising talent.

The front office is expected to have their hands full with a few key players set to hit the free agent market in the coming weeks such as sixth-year safety Kenny Vaccaro. According to Larry Holder of NOLA.com, the Saints are expected to let the 27-year-old walk in NFL free agency.

Kenny Vaccaro, Alex Okafor and Senio Kelemete headline the unrestricted free agency class for the Saints in 2018. Vaccaro is likely on his way out. Okafor and Kelemete could return to the Saints for the right price. The rest of the crop consists of role players and backups.

Vaccaro has been a huge part of the Saints' secondary throughout much of his career, but his tenure looks to be coming to an end with the team investing in other young talents in safety Vonn Bell and Marcus Williams to be the starting duo in the secondary moving forward.

The former first-round selection has been a substantial find for New Orleans as a hard-hitting safety, but injuries have limited his playing time on the field as he has only played one full season in his first five years. This was the case this past December as he saw his 2017 campaign end prematurely due to groin surgery.

It isn't a knock on the talent that Vaccaro, but a change a scenery may be what he needs to get back on track. At the same time, he could be in line for a lucrative contract on the open market that could be out of the Saints' price range to bring him back in the fold. If he can stay healthy, Vaccaro has plenty of highly productive years ahead of him as a centerpiece in the secondary for another franchise.