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Saints Show They’re Still Looking For Tight Ends

By Gene Higginbotham

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The New Orleans Saints were publicly in the market for a tight end about a month ago when they tried to sign veteran Jermaine Gresham who ultimately ended up inking a deal with the Arizona Cardinals.

Since then they have had to settle with some lesser known or less than stellar options especially after the market began to dry up.

Kevin Brock was signed following an injury to rookie Jack Tabb and they also added Alex Smith for a short time before releasing him, then re-signing him after Brock was placed on injured reserve.

A 2012 third round draft bust, Michael Egnew, was added to the roster most recently just in case the plague of injuries hitting the league continues.

Unless something changes it looks as if Benjamin Watson will be the starting tight end followed by Josh Hill and then Orson Charles.

But the according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Saints tried to add another tight end to the roster but lost out.

Sep 28, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers tight end Derek Carrier (46) carries the ball against Philadelphia Eagles strong safety Nate Allen (29) during the fourth quarter at Levi

Tight end Derek Carrier was recently traded by the San Francisco 49ers to the Washington Redskins for a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft and the Saints, along with the Chicago Bears, were trying to trade for Carrier as well.

Carrier played his collegiate ball at Beloit College and was a major offense weapon for the Buccaneers.

During his four seasons at Beloit he shattered records making 189 catches for 3,111 yards and 29 touchdowns, with 15 games where he had 100-plus receiving yardage.

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He went undrafted in 2012 and afterwards signed with the Oakland Raiders but was released in August of that year.

Carrier then signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in September 2012 where he ended up on their practice squad before being released in August 2013.

The 49ers then signed him to their practice squad in September 2013 and was later put on the active roster in November.

Carrier was just given a two-year extension by the 49ers in March of this year for $3.3 million after catching nine passes for 105 yards in 2014.

It’s unclear what the Saints tried to offer for Carrier but it was likely along the lines of a sixth or seventh round pick considering he went undrafted.

Aug 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Washington Redskins tight end Niles Paul (84) is carted off the field after an injury during the first quarter of preseason NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

The Redskins won the bidding war and gladly gave up a fifth rounder considering they lost both of their starting tight ends in Niles Paul and Logan Paulsen before the preseason barely got started.

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The Saints failed to snag several veteran tight ends during free agency this year due to a tight salary cap and trying to focus on signing some other key free agents like cornerback Brandon Browner and running back C.J. Spiller.

They also chose not to address the position during the draft when they could have chosen tight end Maxx Williams at #44 but went with linebacker Hau’oli Kikaha instead(the Baltimore Ravens got Williams at #55).

If the Saints are still in the market for a tight end, they still have the option of waiting until September 1st when rosters are trimmed to 75 players and September 5th when the final 53-player rosters are due.

Of course if injuries continue to mount as they have during the preseason, they won’t be the only ones scanning the horizons for some value at tight end…..

Next: Five Saints Players Who Need To Rebound Against The Patriots

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