Saints Potential TE Targets in Free Agency

After trading Adam Trautman to Denver, New Orleans might turn back to free agency to find TE depth behind Juwan Johnson.

On Day 3 of the NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints traded TE Adam Trautman and a seventh-round pick (#257 overall) to the Denver Broncos. In return, the Saints got the 18th pick of the sixth-round, which they used to select Wake Forest WR A.T. Perry. 

Trautman returns to Sean Payton, the coach who drafted him out of Dayton with a third-round choice in the 2020 Draft. To get him, the Saints traded four late-round picks to move up to Number 105 overall. 

The 26-year-old Trautman was expected to take over the starting tight end spot. After a promising rookie year of 15 catches for 171 yards and a touchdown, he was given that starting job in 2021. He'd become expendable two years later because he never lived up to the team’s expectations. 

In three years with New Orleans, Trautman offered no receiving threat for the offense, totaling just 60 passes for 641 yards and four scores. He was an adequate blocker but was also inconsistent in that capacity. Juwan Johnson, an undrafted wideout in 2020, surpassed Trautman on the depth chart in 2022.

Johnson is a good receiving threat, but struggles at times as an in-line blocker. With Trautman gone, the team has only Johnson, Lucas Krull, and Miller Forristall at the position. Taysom Hill is listed as a tight end, but typically lines up in the backfield. Central Michigan TE was also added as an undrafted rookie on Saturday. 

New Orleans might find look to a veteran free agent to bolster their depth at this position. Here are the tight ends still available on the free-agent market. 

*(age and previous team in parentheses)

• Foster Moreau (26 - Raiders)

• Cameron Brate (31 - Buccaneers)

• Kyle Rudolph (33 - Buccaneers)

• Maxx Williams (29 - Cardinals)

• Geoff Swaim (29 - Titans)

• Tyler Kroft (30 - 49ers)

• Eric Tomlinson (31 - Broncos)

• MyCole Pruitt (31 - Falcons)

• Ryan Griffin (33 - Bears)

• Anthony Firkser (28 - Falcons)

• Adam Shaheen (28 - Dolphins)

Dec 4, 2022; Las Vegas Raiders tight end Foster Moreau (87) makes a catch behind Chargers linebacker Drue Tranquill (49). Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Moreau is the name to watch closest. New Orleans brought him in for a visit in March, only for a physical to reveal a form of Hodgkins lymphoma. He announced that he'd step away from football until he gets treatment, but intends to return to the sport. 

Moreau actually returned to the Saints' facility to finish his exam early this month. If the prognosis is good, then it seems likely that the team would sign him and place him on the non-football injury list until he can play later this season. 

The 6'4" and 250-Lb. Moreau played collegiately at LSU. A fourth-round pick by the Oakland Raiders in 2019, he also played four seasons with New Saints QB Derek Carr. Moreau is an outstanding blocker and big-bodied intermediate receiver, catching 91 passes for 1,107 yards and 12 touchdowns as a complementary target. 

New Orleans is also very familiar with Brate, who played nine seasons with division rival Tampa Bay. At 6'5" and 245-Lbs., Brate is an agile receiver and an underrated in-line blocker. He has 273 career catches for 2,857 yards and 33 scores, but is coming off the lowest output since his rookie year.

Dec 31, 2017; Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cameron Brate (84) goes up for a catch over New Orleans Saints safety Vonn Bell (48). Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY

Rudolph is another savvy veteran who's been a thorn in the side of the Saints, mostly during a productive 10-year career with the Vikings. An outstanding receiver in his prime, the 6'6" and 265-Lb. Rudolph has noticeably slowed in the last two years. Still, he would bring veteran in-line experience to the offense. 

Williams is a former second-round pick (2015) who has been plagued by injuries over his eight-year career. Those injuries have robbed him of his downfield speed, but he could still be a reliable possession receiver and adequate blocker if healthy. 

Firkser was a complementary receiving threat during his first four years with Tennessee. Swaim has also flashed receiving skills over his seven-year career and is a big-bodied blocker. Kroft, Tomlinson, Griffin, Pruitt, and Shaheen have been mostly blocking specialists throughout their NFL careers. 

The fact that New Orleans passed up several tight ends in both free agency and the draft is telling. It shows how they feel about Juwan Johnson, especially after trading Trautman with little else on the roster.

Jan 1, 2023; Atlanta Falcons tight end MyCole Pruitt (85) stiff arms Arizona Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson (34). Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY

The Saints don't need a prolific receiver at the tight end position. Johnson brings a bona-fide receiving threat to complement the talent that this team has at wideout. What New Orleans will look to add to their thin depth chart is a player who can be a reliable in-line blocker and not be a liability as a target in the passing game. 

It seems logical that the Saints will sign Foster Moreau. Without a timetable for his return, expect the team to bring in other veterans for a look, at least to see if they can find someone who could be an adequate blocker along the edge.