Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

HEY, YOUR NOT ALLOWED TO TALK! YOUR NAME IS MORNINGWOOD, AND YOU HAVE A PICTURE OF PENNINGTON MAKING OUT WITH HIS LINEMAN. YOU SCARE ME! I BET YOU PARTY ON THE WRONG END OF BOURBON ST. LOL J/K

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

No, we don't have 6 TE's. There are two on the current roster (Tory Humphrey and Tyler Lorenzen) besides Shockey and Thomas. Dinkins, Campbell, and Miller are all free agents who are likely not going to be re-signed. I would take this project with tremendous upside over Lorenzen and Humphrey. He fills a need.

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

Graham is bigger than gates, faster than gates, better vert than gates. Gates is definitely the better player, but you cannot say that graham does not have the tools to be a great TE in the league

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

Still, we have two or three or four. Our offense was not bad last year, just number 1 in the NFL. Our needs are all on defense. I say linebacker, other people say tackle, whatever. You will hear this a lot .... "you know you're a Saints fan when you have the ball and a 21 point lead at the two minute warning and you're praying for one more first down". That's true because our defense has some holes in it. And we pick an offensive lineman and a tight end with our 2nd and 3rd??!! I'm confused. (which I admit is nothing unusual)

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

We seem to be drafting a bit "cocky" as if we do not need any help since we are the Super Bowl Champions. We have drafted 3 players that are backups. Robinson is a nickel at best. Brown is our 4th OT and Graham is our 3rd TE at best. Both Brown and Graham are developmental type players who need work and Robinson is a boom or bust guy with consistency issues. It is almost as if we forgot that we need more pressure on the QB and need to stop the run.

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

I agree that there were bigger needs. Not so sure about linebacker, because it seems like they are going to stay in-house to replace Fujita. (I still want to see what Stanley Arnoux can do). Probably the biggest need is DT, and that wasn't addressed, but the off-season isn't over yet, either. The draft isn't the end of the world if we don't get those players. We didn't draft two of the players I was looking at in the 3rd round (one because the Jags took him, and the other is still available). However, I do see the reasoning behind each pick. Robinson because of injury concerns from last season, Brown because the status of Jammal Brown is up in the air, and Graham because of the tremendous upside and physical ability this kid has in an area that could be upgraded. I think a lot of us are just disappointed because the Saints didn't draft, not only what we thought were needs, but highly recognizable names. I guess that is what we can expect with drafting last every round.

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

I would say, we have an excellent nickel now. Better than Jenkins or Gay in man to man coverage. Brown will be a starter sooner rather than later. He is better than every OT on our roster except Stinch and Brown. This Graham kid is a freak and will be a stud in time. I like the picks. Plus we have three more picks left. Keep the faith.

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

I'm right there with you.

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

I'm not familiar with names, I just know what we lost and know we have to replace what we lost. ok, let's assume we already have someone to step up into Fujita's spot, even though I haven't heard a reasonable name that's currently on the roster. Doesn't that guy need a back-up? We just don't need another tight end unless we're collecting them.

Re: TE Jimmy Graham
 

I definitely don't think we were drafting cocky. From the way I see it, they went BPA with the top players on their board. It's not like we over drafted any of these guys where we picked. It was clear last year when either Greer or Porter went down, our secondary struggled to replace their production. Robinson who is considered a shutdown type corner, is insurance. The snaps Jenkins got a corner last year did not look good... maybe as many have said throughout the season, he is a better fit at safety. Should Sharper not return, we kill two birds with one stone.

As for Brown, he was projected to go as early as late first and we were able to land him at the end of the second round. That's tremendous value. Remember Jammal Brown has yet to sign his 1 year tender so we have no idea what's going to happen with him. Others have pointed out that there are also a couple guys that are on 1 year deals. Drew Brees is the most important piece to this team... you could never blame the Saints for drafting lineman to make sure Brees stays on his feet.

As far as Graham is concerned, well... sure we all think there were better picks out there but at the end of the day, we don't know jack squat. We have an outstanding job the past couple of years of getting very good production out of our mid round picks. I'm sure Payton incompany did a lot of homework on this guy and felt he was the best player for us at the pick. A key to maintaining our offensive production is to not let the league catch up with us. Adding Graham gives opposing defenses even more to think about... as if they didn't have enough to worry about already.

Now moving along to not improving our pass rush and not addressing our LB situation, we have. Alex Brown, who still has gas left in the tank, will be here for the next two years. The draft isn't over yet and like I said before, we do a great job of evaluating talent... we should be able to find some more help tomorrow at end. Also remember we have two guys that were out last year coming back... one who is a LB. Our staff are also high on what Casillas and Dunbar can do.