Jimmy Graham Ruled Tight End

[footballplaya52]

Jimmy Graham deemed tight end in system arbitration

Chris Wesseling
Around the League Writer

Arbitrator Stephen Burbank ruled Wednesday that New Orleans Saints star Jimmy Graham is indeed a tight end, per NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport, who obtained a copy of the decision.

Graham had filed a grievance arguing that he deserved to be designated as a wide receiver under the franchise tag because he spent more time out wide and in the slot than at the line of the scrimmage, as a traditional tight end.

 

[Fuhgeddaboudit]

Aaron Hernandez is also pissed he was ruled Loose End

 

[Mobruler]

Gotta be honest, this is bullshit.  It's hard to feel bad for a millionaire athlete, but Graham got totally screwed..

 

[bosoxlover12]

The arbitrators ruled Jimmy Graham is now tagged at $7.035 million, as a tight end. The tag number would have been at $12.312 million.
 
 
I think this is the best move, for the NFL. If Graham can get away with being called a WR, despite being a TE, then there will be a plethora of appeals in the future, whether TEs or receiving backs trying to be WRs, 3-4 LBs and 3tech DTs trying to be DEs, etc. Get tagged at the position that you are listed as on the team roster, not what you want to be viewed as

 

[bosoxlover12]

Gotta be honest, this is bullshit.  It's hard to feel bad for a millionaire athlete, but Graham got totally screwed..

He's a fucking TE. On the depth chart he's a TE. In practice, he practices with TEs. His Twitter profile lists himself as a TE.

 

[Mobruler]

He's a fucking TE. On the depth chart he's a TE. In practice, he practices with TEs. His Twitter profile lists himself as a TE.

 
All stupidity.  So many people stating stupid facts on this like which percentage he was split out, all types of garbage.
 
All I need to know is the production.  He sure has the production of a receiver. 

 

[footballplaya52]

All stupidity.  So many people stating stupid facts on this like which percentage he was split out, all types of garbage.
 
All I need to know is the production.  He sure has the production of a receiver.

So every tight end that has a great year is a wideout now? Regardless of them blocking and playing on the end of the line?

 

[jonathanlambert33]

This was always gonna be the ending outcome. He's a below average WR, elite TE.

 

[BwareDWare94]

So every tight end that has a great year is a wideout now? Regardless of them blocking and playing on the end of the line?

 
Have ever seen Jimmy Graham block? I know I haven't.

 

[Mobruler]

So every tight end that has a great year is a wideout now? Regardless of them blocking and playing on the end of the line?

 
Let's take a step back and think about what the franchise tag is for a second here.  It's a completely un-American system to force the player into a situation that is almost never good for them and it's borderline exploitation.  After the player has fulfilled his contract with you, you are taking away his right to choose his employer and you are taking away his long-term security by forcing him to a one year contract in a sport where multiple careers are ended by injury every season.
 
So now after you've already done all of that to the player, now you're probably going to grossly underpay him because the amount of his contract has nothing to do with his actual value, but instead, the salaries of the top five paid players at his position.  When you're Jimmy Graham and you're by far and away the best player at your position, this goes from borderline exploitation to completely despicable total exploitation.  Jared Cook is part of determining what Jimmy Graham should be paid.
 
It's only fair to pay people in this world based on their performance.  Somehow, the NFL is the only place where I guess people don't think that should be the case.  You're already forcing the man into a scary situation with a one year contract (he and the Saints could always agree to a long term deal shortly and I hope that's the case), the man definitely produces like a WR, so if it's a borderline decision that could go either way, just pay the man like a WR.
 
I don't think you're opening some kind of can of worms here.  It's not like there have been many TEs in the history of football that can put up 3,500 yards and 36 TDs over three seasons.  But if teams do have TEs that are offensive superstars of that caliber, and they want to flex them out as much as Graham was, and they are selling piles of TE jerseys because of piles of touchdowns, then yeah, they should pay those guys like WRs too.

 

[Mobruler]

 
Have ever seen Jimmy Graham block? I know I haven't.

 
Good thing he didn't ask for LT money.  Straw man argument, tbh.

 

[bosoxlover12]

 
Let's take a step back and think about what the franchise tag is for a second here.  It's a completely un-American system to force the player into a situation that is almost never good for them and it's borderline exploitation.  After the player has fulfilled his contract with you, you are taking away his right to choose his employer and you are taking away his long-term security by forcing him to a one year contract in a sport where multiple careers are ended by injury every season.
 
So now after you've already done all of that to the player, now you're probably going to grossly underpay him because the amount of his contract has nothing to do with his actual value, but instead, the salaries of the top five paid players at his position.  When you're Jimmy Graham and you're by far and away the best player at your position, this goes from borderline exploitation to completely despicable total exploitation.  Jared Cook is part of determining what Jimmy Graham should be paid.
 
It's only fair to pay people in this world based on their performance.  Somehow, the NFL is the only place where I guess people don't think that should be the case.  You're already forcing the man into a scary situation with a one year contract (he and the Saints could always agree to a long term deal shortly and I hope that's the case), the man definitely produces like a WR, so if it's a borderline decision that could go either way, just pay the man like a WR.
 
I don't think you're opening some kind of can of worms here.  It's not like there have been many TEs in the history of football that can put up 3,500 yards and 36 TDs over three seasons.  But if teams do have TEs that are offensive superstars of that caliber, and they want to flex them out as much as Graham was, and they are selling piles of TE jerseys because of piles of touchdowns, then yeah, they should pay those guys like WRs too.

In 2011, Gronk had a 90/1327/17 season. That was 5th in receptions, 6th in receiving yards, 1st in TDs in the NFL. Does that make him a WR? No. He's a behemoth of a TE, and he got paid like one ($53M/6). If Graham stopped bitching about being a WR over a TE, he'd get his new contract sooner. He'll probably get a $60M/6 deal if he just accepted his tag, and be the highest paid TE in the league. The fact that he'd rather sacrifice $5M in salary to prolong a contract he'd get anyways, and risk the opportunity to play with Brees again (Brees imo makes Graham better than he really is), is foolish

 

[Mobruler]

In 2011, Gronk had a 90/1327/17 season. That was 5th in receptions, 6th in receiving yards, 1st in TDs in the NFL. Does that make him a WR? No. He's a behemoth of a TE, and he got paid like one ($53M/6). If Graham stopped bitching about being a WR over a TE, he'd get his new contract sooner. He'll probably get a $60M/6 deal if he just accepted his tag, and be the highest paid TE in the league. The fact that he'd rather sacrifice $5M in salary to prolong a contract he'd get anyways, and risk the opportunity to play with Brees again (Brees imo makes Graham better than he really is), is foolish

 
This whole thing is written on the assumption that the Saints are going to give him a deserved extension before the season starts.

 

[bosoxlover12]

They probably would have.

 

[Delirium]

Great fucking success, thank you!

 

[footballplaya52]

I sort of agree its a way for teams to rip a guy off for a year

 

[elcheato]

 
Graham lined up either in the slot or out wide on 67 percent of his snaps last year,

 

[jonathanlambert33]

Graham only caught 22 passes vs corners last year.

 

[Mobruler]

Graham only caught 22 passes vs corners last year.

 
You just want the cap space.

 

[jonathanlambert33]

Obviously, but I never bought into him being a WR. He's a TE.