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Saints, Jimmy Graham, franchise tag, and position battle

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Interesting battle potentially ahead as TEs become more important.

Compared to all receivers(WR/TE), Graham was 12th in targets, 13th in receptions, 15th in yards, 9th in 20+ yards, 12th in first downs, and 1st in TDs(16) while only ranking 66th amongst all receivers and 19th among TEs in snaps due to mid-October foot injury.


If New Orleans uses its franchise tag on Graham, the move likely would trigger a groundbreaking battle over whether the pending free agent should be officially considered a tight end or a wide receiver.

Loomis, who has stressed that the March 3 franchise-tag deadline is more than a month away, also made it clear that the Saints consider Graham a tight end.

"Isn't that what we drafted him as? Isn't that what he made the Pro Bowl as?" Loomis said Tuesday. "That's what we see him as, a tight end. ... That's what makes him valuable."

The difference between the franchise-tag salary for a receiver and a tight end will be significant. Last year it was $10.5 million versus $6 million.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Graham lined up as a receiver on 67 percent of his snaps in 2013 (45 percent in the slot, 22 percent out wide, 33 percent as an in-line tight end).
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http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/1...ays-not-keen-new-orleans-saints-franchise-tag
 
Call him a TE if you want, but if he lines up at WR 67% of the time and has top WR production then he deserves to get the WR franchise tag and not the TE tag. If you want to pay him like a TE (which clearly they do) then line him up as a TE and not a WR.
 
WolverineFan said:
Call him a TE if you want, but if he lines up at WR 67% of the time and has top WR production then he deserves to get the WR franchise tag and not the TE tag. If you want to pay him like a TE (which clearly they do) then line him up as a TE and not a WR.
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Here is your solution: If he lines up at WR 67% of the time then give him 67% of the franchise WR money and 33% of the TE money. That would give Graham $8 million instead of $6 million. Neither side should be angry over that.
 
This happened with Terrell Suggs and the Ravens in 2008. Suggs said he should be franchised as DE, and the Ravens said LB. Difference in tag amount was about $800K. The fact that there's no distinction between ILB and OLB for franchise tag purposes also muddied things up. They ended up splitting the difference and bumping up his tag amount by around $450K (With the blessing of all interested parties including the NFL and the NFLPA of course).

I'm guessing that's where this ends up.
 
Jimmy Graham and Rethinking NFL Positions
Its actual birthday is up for debate, but it’s safe to say the receiving tight end is firmly in middle age. The position hit 50 somewhere around 2011, half a century after Mike Ditka landed in Chicago and caught 56 passes. At the time, it was the single-season record for a tight end. He’d break it the next year. And the year after that. And then one more time. His 75-catch mark in 1964 held up for 16 seasons.

That’s the year Kellen Winslow and Don Coryell redefined what the tight end could be. Winslow caught...
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JCTexan said:
Here is your solution: If he lines up at WR 67% of the time then give him 67% of the franchise WR money and 33% of the TE money. That would give Graham $8 million instead of $6 million. Neither side should be angry over that.
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Thats actually a really great idea.
 
JCTexan said:
Here is your solution: If he lines up at WR 67% of the time then give him 67% of the franchise WR money and 33% of the TE money. That would give Graham $8 million instead of $6 million. Neither side should be angry over that.
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($10.5 mil x .67) + ($6 mil x .33) = $9.015 million
 
JCTexan said:
Here is your solution: If he lines up at WR 67% of the time then give him 67% of the franchise WR money and 33% of the TE money. That would give Graham $8 million instead of $6 million. Neither side should be angry over that.
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Which leads to [insert team name here] making [insert franchise QB name here] their punter to lower a bloated QB franchise tag. :kitten:

The simple solution here is don't screw around with someone with as much talent of Graham. Lock him down for multiple years and don't poke the franchise tag bear.
 
The New Orleans Saints recently utilized the franchise tag on tight end Jimmy Graham... any team that wants him needs to write a fat check and relinquish two first-round picks.
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"I think the only players more valuable than Jimmy Graham are three or four quarterbacks," said one AFC general manager. "That's it."
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Thus, several general mangers say the Saints will have to fight to keep Graham, and the heavy price tag will not be as intimidating to some teams. These executives believe a handful of franchises are preparing offers to get Graham. They say this isn't speculation. However, no teams have officially revealed their hand. So, for now, it's partially speculation.

The best way to state this: Word is beginning to leak around the league that one or more teams will make a run at Graham and are more than willing to give up two first-rounders to get him. What hasn't leaked yet are the names of the teams.
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http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ts-te-jimmy-graham-but-hes-not-worth-the-cost
 
gary said:
I would not trade Graham.
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It would not really be a trade, per se...

When the New Orleans Saints slapped the franchise tag on Jimmy Graham on Friday, they did so with the non-exclusive designation.

This particular tag designation allows any team to negotiate with Graham and sign him to an offer sheet, which the Saints have the right to match. If New Orleans declines to match, they would receive two first-round draft picks from said offering team.
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Hefty price.
 
If I were the Seahawks, I would definitely consider signing Jimmy Graham for about 10m per year. Give the Saints the 32nd pick in this draft, and probably the 31st or 32nd pick in 2015.
 
Dutchrudder said:
If I were the Seahawks, I would definitely consider signing Jimmy Graham for about 10m per year. Give the Saints the 32nd pick in this draft, and probably the 31st or 32nd pick in 2015.
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I think the Seahawks would have to make more moves to do that, cap situation similar to ours.
 
Troy Chapman said:
I think the Seahawks would have to make more moves to do that, cap situation similar to ours.
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They are projected to have over 11m in capspace to start free agency, and they could move around some more money to free up more space. If I was the Seattle GM, and I though Graham was a possibility, I would cut Zach Miller and free up 5 million to put towards signing Jimmy. There is no question that WR and TE are the weak links on that offense right now, and Graham would be a perfect fit for that team. 10m a year is what he can get, maybe 8m APY from a team like Seattle that has a very good chance of winning a Super Bowl in the next couple years.
 
Joel Corry ‏@corryjoel
If Jimmy Graham doesn't sign a long term deal by the 7/15 deadline, expect him to fight for a no franchise tag clause with his tender.
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Ian Rapoport ‏@RapSheet
Judge Burbank: “Mr. Graham refers to himself as a tight end in social media that he controls (Twitter & Facebook) & his agents do so as well

The trickle down effect of the Graham decision hits a lot of players: Julius Thomas, Eric Ebron, etc. Wide-ranging precedent

Considering next step (appeal) RT @NFLPA: #NFLPA Statement on Jimmy Graham Franchise Tag Ruling: http://bit.ly/Vdj5Rg #Saints

There is a reference from @NFLPA in the ruling about whether Graham will accept the TE franchise tag. Possibility that he may not.

The #Saints can now franchise tag Jimmy Graham as a tight end at $7.053M. A savings of $5M vs a WR tag

The Jimmy Graham decision is out. Burbank has ruled he’s a tight end. The Saints have won
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Larry Holder ‏@LarryHolder
Complete ruling from Stephen Burbank on New Orleans Saints' Jimmy Graham being deemed a 'tight end' http://s.nola.com/MaUTfnR
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Interestingly, Jordan Cameron of the Browns changed his twitter bio from "TE" to "pass catcher" just after the info about Graham and the Twitter bio came out.
 
Hey Mr. Graham this is what we got for you:

You'll get to line up in the x, y, slot and z spots on the offense. Also, we'll need you to block huge DE's and LB's, and after they knock you silly, you get to release to go catch a ball and have about 5 guys looking to hit you hard enough to knock the ball loose.

Also, you need to be one of the tallest guys on the field, but also one of the fastest. And we'll need you to play a little bit of fullback. So we need you to be 50% stud OT, and 50% stud WR. But hey, we'll pay you about 50% of what we pay those OT's and WR's. No, no no no, not 50% of BOTH their salaries, just 50% of their salaries period.

Why you mad?
 
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