Graham is one of, if not the best tight end in the NFL and he wants to be paid like a #1 wide receiver, the Saints don’t seem willing to make that type of investment.
Graham is not happy about them saying they plan to franchise him if they can’t come to an agreement on long term deal.
“I’m not keen on the franchise tag,” Graham said after Pro Bowl practice Friday, according to NFL.com. “That would be really unfortunate, but that is really all I have to say about that one.”
“That’s real unfortunate,” he said. “If that happens, it doesn’t really matter what I prefer.”
The battle will come over if Graham is franchised as a Tight End or Wide Receiver. The difference in money is almost $4 million, the Saints have made it clear they view him as 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 numbers say he is just a tight end in name only as he lined up as a Wide Receiver 67% of the time. This could get ugly.