Is Drafting Tight End A Luxury Or Necessity For The Saints?

Drafting a tight end feels like it would be luxury for the Saints, but could it also be a necessity?

Dec 31, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; New Orleans Saints tight end Juwan Johnson (83) breaks a tackle / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

What will the Saints do at the end of April? That is quite the question we're going to get an answer to when the NFL Draft rolls around. New Orleans currently has nine picks to work with, having just two in the first two days (No. 14 and No. 45). After that, it'll be really quiet until the 5th Round, but knowing how Mickey Loomis, Jeff Ireland and Dennis Allen operate, they won't be sitting on their hands.

We've been looking at each position for the Saints to see whether or not there's credibility to drafting them. We're winding down on the offensive series, taking a look at the tight end group.

Previous Entries: Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver

Current Depth Chart: Juwan Johnson, Foster Moreau, Taysom Hill, Tommy Hudson, Michael Jacobson

Saints Draft Prospect Outlook - Tight End

• Day 1 Options: Brock Bowers (Georgia)
• Day 2 Options: Ben Sinnott (Kansas State), Ja'Tavion Sanders (Texas), Cade Stover (Ohio State), Jared Wiley (TCU)
• Day 3 Options: Theo Johnson (Penn State), Jaheim Bell (Florida State), Tip Reiman (Illinois), Jack Westover (Washington), Erick All (Iowa), A.J. Barner (Michigan), Tanner McLachlan (Arizona), Brevyn Spann-Ford (Minnesota), Zach Heins (South Dakota State)
• UDFAs: Isaac Rex (BYU), Jale, Kemari Young (Florida A&M), Trey Knox (South Carolina), Mason Pline (Furman), Kevin Foelsch (New Haven)

THE CASE FOR DRAFTING

It's hardly a secret that the Saints didn't get what they needed from their tight end group last season. Some of it was good, while a good bit of it made you scratch your head. The thing to remember here for New Orleans is that they need to answer the question of whether or not Juwan Johnson is the guy for the Klint Kubiak offense. He hit a stride after being challenged by the coaches last season, responding to it well and finishing on a high note.

Foster Moreau did a lot of the dirty work for the offense, while Taysom Hill saw the most active receiving output of his career. Then there's Jimmy Graham. He went from a promising red zone threat to being a familiar inactive, but then caught fire towards the end of the year. He finished appearing in less than 15% (14.8%) of the team's snaps (171).

One of the missing elements from the Saints offense is not having a player at the position that was equivalent to prime Jimmy Graham. It just hasn't happened for New Orleans ever since he was traded. They just haven't had the game-changer like you see on some teams around the league. That's what makes Brock Bowers so enticing. He looks to be the guy in this draft, and whoever gets him will reap the rewards. However, would New Orleans make a play knowing that the offensive line is a more pressing need?

If New Orleans doesn't get Bowers, then Ja'Tavion Sanders would be a pretty nice consolation prize if they can get him at No. 45. Of course, all of it remains to be seen, but there's some top-end talent that could honestly make the room a lot better. The middle rounds could also have some upside, and think about some of those who were at the Senior Bowl.

THE CASE FOR NOT DRAFTING

Not adding to the room really would be a case of running it back and hoping the best with Kubiak's new offense. Essentially, it's banking on what you have to grow and be better in the new system. Tight ends coach Clancy Barone was one of the lone holdovers for the Saints offensive staff, who has plenty of familiarity with Klint Kubiak and also Andrew Janocko. So, perhaps maximizing the output in his second season coupled with Kubiak's scheme could provide a boost.

The free agent market is pretty dry, but has a lot of veterans that could be brought in closer to camp. It's mainly a group of 30-and-overs, to say the least. The door doesn't appear to be totally closed on Jimmy Graham, who said in a 'thank you' post that he didn't know what the future holds for him, but bringing him back just to have him play in a small sample size seems silly.

When you look at this spot, it's a bit unsettling. One injury to this group could certainly be devastasting. In all fairness, they'll add to the room going into training camp, but we'll just have to see if that's during the draft or post-draft. There's certainly a strong argument to be made on why they need to consider adding no matter what, however.