Is Jimmy Graham a Tight End or a Wide Receiver?

[LogicMan]

Sharpe a great TE but by todays standards he would be short. He never towered over the defenders like this new crop. How the heck do you guard these giants?

I think Tony G is the standard and the first true super tall TE. Amazing career. Thomas finally had a good year. Looks like a guy on the way up. Gronk has had horrible luck, plays full out, may need to tone it back a bit.

 

[Bunkamania]

He's a TE that benefits immensely from lining up in the slot.

 

[SonnyCID]

Sharpe a great TE but by todays standards he would be short. He never towered over the defenders like this new crop. How the heck do you guard these giants?

I think Tony G is the standard and the first true super tall TE. Amazing career. Thomas finally had a good year. Looks like a guy on the way up. Gronk has had horrible luck, plays full out, may need to tone it back a bit.

There have been lots of very tall tight ends well before Tony: Casper, Winslow, Bavaro, Coates, J Smith....

 

[JDM]

Per the CBA he's a receiver, so he has to be paid as such.

 

[Midnightangel]

well his team says he is a TE & the NFL says he is a TE, then he is a TE. Seems pretty simple to me.
How an arbitrator is gonna say otherwise is beyond me.

Because he lines most of the time at slot.

And according to the CBA, that's huge. That means if he's going to be tagged, he should be getting WR money, not TE money.

And with an extra 5M on the line, I think you'd fight for WR tag money as well.

 

[Bunkamania]

Where you line up doesn't necessarily equate to the position you are playing. A quarterback in shotgun could be labeled a punter. If your quarterback lines up in shotgun for most of his snaps should he be paid as a punter?

I know the argument is stupid but, the dude plays TE and goes to the Pro-Bowl as a TE.

 

[Bunkamania]

In my opinion, the best way to resolve this is to take the top 5 WR contracts and the top 5 TE contracts then divide it by 10.

 

[SonnyCID]

He doesn't "line up" outside a majority of the plays. He lines up off tackle but motions to counter the coverage.

If you line up at TE in order for the defense to defend you like one, then you my friend are a tight end.

 

[JDM]

Where you are when the snap is taken is where you lined up. The CBA makes it very clear that where he plays the majority of his snaps is his position, which makes it absurd that there is any consideration whatsoever to the idea he can get a tight end tag.

66% of his snaps are at WR. Per the CBA that makes him a receiver, and there is no debate to be had.

 

[Bunkamania]

It's going to suck next year when he can only be used as a WR in fantasy.

 

[Schmoopy1000]

Where you are when the snap is taken is where you lined up. The CBA makes it very clear that where he plays the majority of his snaps is his position, which makes it absurd that there is any consideration whatsoever to the idea he can get a tight end tag.

66% of his snaps are at WR. Per the CBA that makes him a receiver, and there is no debate to be had.

can you please send us a link of this print on the CBA so we can read what it actually says, instead of just taking your word for it. because word on the street is he is a pretty good TE.
the start of a of a play is when they line up (as a TE). Penalties can be accessed if they don't motion properly & such. so what you have is a TE in motion, not a WR.

 

[JDM]

Penalties can be assessed for too many men in the huddle too. Are they the position they are in the huddle now?

Where the ball is snapped is where you lined up.

 

[BusSport]

Where you are when the snap is taken is where you lined up. The CBA makes it very clear that where he plays the majority of his snaps is his position, which makes it absurd that there is any consideration whatsoever to the idea he can get a tight end tag.

66% of his snaps are at WR. Per the CBA that makes him a receiver, and there is no debate to be had.

If you're so certain he's a receiver, why did you vote him as a tight end in the poll?

 

[JDM]

I clicked the wrong button and can't change it.

 

[flaraider]

I think that Graham's agent is pretty clever for recognizing that the TE and WR designations aren't descriptive for a TE who routinely lines up out wide. WRs get paid more than TEs, so if your client routinely lines up out wide, why not try to get him paid like other guys who are labeled WRs?`

that plays TE.

Per the CBA he's a receiver, so he has to be paid as such.

Because he lines most of the time at slot.

And according to the CBA, that's huge. That means if he's going to be tagged, he should be getting WR money, not TE money.

And with an extra 5M on the line, I think you'd fight for WR tag money as well.

Where you are when the snap is taken is where you lined up. The CBA makes it very clear that where he plays the majority of his snaps is his position, which makes it absurd that there is any consideration whatsoever to the idea he can get a tight end tag.

66% of his snaps are at WR. Per the CBA that makes him a receiver, and there is no debate to be had.

We have debated this subject a few times already, and while I am in complete agreement that he is indeed and most definitely a TE, his argument is sound and based on where he is lined up at the snap. The #1 reason this is important is because he is negotiating his franchise designation, not his long term contract, as such he is taking a big hit because of his TE position. The Saints brought this on themselves by franchising Graham, they should have considered resigning, IMO.

 

[wazzu31]

Where in the CBA does it specify that a tight end is someone who is squatted down outside the tackle prior to the ball being snapped? The dude is a TE or he wouldn't be in the league. He'd get dominated by a number 2 corner on any team in a real receiver slot.

 

[JDM]

If that were the case why haven't teams done that? He was their leading receiver, surely someone should have tried to shut him down...


He poses mismatches, and he does so lined up at WR. He'd shred most corners even more easily because he wouldn't need any separation to beat them.

Per the CBA, it isn't his "role" that matters, it's where he's lined up. Where he's lined up is at WR.

 

[sjballer03]

If you're so certain he's a receiver, why did you vote him as a tight end in the poll?

 

[sjballer03]

can you please send us a link of this print on the CBA so we can read what it actually says, instead of just taking your word for it. because word on the street is he is a pretty good TE.
the start of a of a play is when they line up (as a TE). Penalties can be accessed if they don't motion properly & such. so what you have is a TE in motion, not a WR.

Notice how JDM ignored your question.

 

[JDM]

We don't have access to the CBA, however it has been extremely widely reported from every credible source that that is what it says.