Free-agent safety Tyrann Mathieu is one of the best players still available in free agency and he could be a perfect fit for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Mathieu, who spent the last three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, is a dynamic defender who would bring toughness and elite leadership to the Bengals' defense.

The former LSU star visited his hometown New Orleans Saints on Tuesday, but it's unclear if a deal will come together.

Mathieu obviously wants to get paid in free agency, but he also badly wants to win another championship. And the Saints aren't on the verge of competing for a championship.

"I want to play for a team that has a chance to win a championship," said Mathieu this week (via The Advocate).

The Honey Badger has also said that he wants to sign with a team that has strong lockerroom leadership.

Those are two of the reasons why I think the Bengals would be a perfect fit for Mathieu.

The only problem is that Cincinnati already has two starting safeties in Jessie Bates and Vonn Bell.

Bates received the franchise tag this offseason from the Bengals. The hope has been that the Bengals will extend the former Wake Forest standout. But those talks have been going on for nearly a year without much progress. At this point, it doesn't seem likely that Bates will sign an extension with Cincinnati.

So why not trade Bates for some draft capital and sign Mathieu?

Tyrann Mathieu on Joe Burrow:

"When you piece together the mental and smarts of the game, he will be doing that for a long time. I see a lot of Tom Brady in him. He doesn’t flinch."

— lindsey ok (@lindseyyok) April 1, 2022

Mathieu, who had plenty of positive things to say about Joe Burrow recently (the two share an LSU connection, even though they didn't play together in Baton Rouge), is likely looking for a deal that pays an AAV roughly the same as what Bates would earn on the franchise tag this season (just under $13 million).

The Bengals, of course, could structure the contract so that the cap hit is less for Mathieu than it would be for Bates.

(If Cincy doesn't trade or extend Bates, they'd likely need to tag him again next season at an even higher price.)

If the Bengals are going to sign a player like Mathieu, the time would be now. Cincinnati has some salary-cap flexibility thanks to several of their key players being on their rookie contracts (Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins). That flexibility won't exist a few years from now.

The Bengals are exactly what Mathieu is looking for in a team. And it makes some sense for Cincinnati to explore a scenario where Bates is traded and Mathieu is signed.

This is likely a longshot, but it would still be wise for Cincinnati to least look into bringing Mathieu to town.

Featured image via Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports