Jimmy Graham Considered A Tight End, Saints Win Grievance Hearing

 

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports that the arbitrator in the Jimmy Graham hearing, Stephen Burbank, has ruled that he should be considered a tight end and not a wide receiver.

• Rapoport adds that the Saints will be able to keep Graham for the tight end franchise tag figure of $7.035 million.
• According to Rapoport, the ruling took into account the fact that Graham is in the tight end meetings during the week, the Saints drafted him as a tight end and his Twitter bio that says he is a tight end.
• Albert Breer mentions that Burbank’s ruling specifically mentioned that Graham should be considered a tight end because the majority of snaps were within four yards of the offensive line.

The difference between the receiver ($12.3 million) and the tight end ($7.035 million) designation is considerable.

It’s worth mentioning that Graham is expected to appeal this ruling, so there is at least a chance that it could be overturned at some point.

This ruling should give the Saints some added leverage in long-term contract talks with Graham. The two sides have until July 15 to negotiate a long-term contract, so I’m sure we should be hearing more about a potential agreement in the coming weeks.

• Mike Triplett of ESPN.com expects a long-term contract for Graham to be closer to the $10 million per year.

Graham managed to put together a very good season, despite the fact that he was hampered by a foot injury for a good portion of the year.  He totaled 86 receptions for 1,215 yards receiving and 16 touchdowns and was rated by Pro Football Focus as the No. 1 tight end in the league.