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Everything 'still trending up' for Saints rookie TE Adam Trautman

BY AMIE JUST | STAFF WRITER PUBLISHED SEP 4, 2020 AT 2:00 PM | UPDATED SEP 4, 2020 AT 5:44 PM

When rookie tight end Adam Trautman walked onto the field at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for the first time last week, he couldn't help but look around.

The former Dayton Flyer had been accustomed to Welcome Stadium, the 11,000-seat venue nestled in a bend of the Great Miami River in Dayton, Ohio.

Trautman knows the 75,000-seat Superdome won't be at its peak for his rookie season, not with pandemic-induced limits on capacity, but he couldn't help but imagine what it'd be like with every seat filled.

"It's more real, I guess you could say," Trautman said of realizing his NFL dream, while standing in the Superdome.

The other thing that made Trautman realize — quickly — that he was in the NFL was how he walked into the facility on that first day and saw quarterback Drew Brees, wide receiver Michael Thomas and defensive end Cameron Jordan, to name a few.

And then playing against Jordan and that defensive line? That's been a little adjustment compared to playing against FCS-sized defensive linemen.


"Cam Jordan, Marcus Davenport, Margus (Hunt), all those defensive ends, we've got some big guys there," Trautman said. "So I'm just kind of getting used to that."

He didn't get the chance to get his feet wet, either, as rookie minicamp and organized team activities were canceled ahead of his introductory season in the NFL.

Even so, early in training camp, tight ends coach Dan Campbell noted that Trautman had not disappointed in his learning of the offense.

"I would say he thinks of the game a little bit (more) like a vet than he does a rookie, which is a good thing," Campbell said. "He learns at a very high rate in regard to that. He doesn't make the same mistake twice, which is extremely encouraging."

Offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael said the same thing, noting how Trautman's been a "quick study" and has a good feel for the game.

Part of what's helped Trautman get accustomed so quickly into the Saints' offense is how he has two sort-of-coaches in his position room with veteran tight ends Jared Cook and Josh Hill.

Cook and Hill combined have 20 years playing experience, with Cook entering the league in 2009 out of South Carolina as a third-round pick and Hill catching on with the Saints in 2013 as an undrafted free agent out of FCS Idaho State.

"You can take things from both of them," Trautman said, adding that Hill is a jack-of-all-trades tight end and Cook brings elite athleticism with everything he does. "Being around those two is incredible."

Even though the season is just over a week away, the Saints are still figuring out what they envision for Trautman, though coach Sean Payton has previously said Trautman fits the mold of a "Y" tight end — a player who has the size to block, but can also work as a receiver.

Trautman said he's embracing both of those elements.

"Obviously, I think I could do both," he said. "I like to stick my hand in the dirt and run block, and be used in the passing game as well, but we're still figuring that out. I've only been here for maybe only like 25, 30 days. It sounds like a long time, but it's really not."

Whatever role he ends up playing for the Saints this season and beyond, the future appears to be bright.

"Everything's still trending up with this kid," Campbell said.

Rugby Saint II

We might have picked up two good tight ends in this years draft. Trautman definitely is making a good impression and he's an athlete with brains. Those two things don't always come together in the same package.