Why New Orleans Saint Jimmy Graham Is the NFL's Best Tight End

Jimmy Graham is the latest NFL tight end to put his basketball pedigree to great use playing pro football.  In his second year in the league, the former Miami Hurricanes forward has vastly exceeded his achievements at Miami, both on the hard court and the gridiron.

How good has Graham been?  He’s not just one of the most effective tight ends in the game.  He’s one of the best receivers at any position.  Through six games, Graham has more yards than Pittsburgh deep threat Mike Wallace and just trails Carolina’s Steve Smith for third most yards in the league.

Graham is on pace to obliterate the single-season receiving yards record for tight ends.  His streak of 100-yard receiving games is currently up to four.  Not too shabby for any wide receiver, but it’s virtually unthinkable for a guy who is just two years removed from pulling in only 17 receptions for Miami in the ACC.

So what is it that makes Graham so good? As with any pass catcher, the reasons begin with the man making the throws.  In just his second year in the NFL, Graham has developed an uncanny connection with Drew Brees, one of the most precise passers in the league.  Graham knows what Brees is looking for when he runs his routes, and it shows, as Graham is averaging 6.5 receptions per game.

Another factor is Graham’s freakish size/speed ratio.  There just aren’t many defenders who can keep up with him and also be able to avoid getting screened off the ball by his ample frame.  Graham gets open against most coverages, and when you are open, Brees is going to deliver a strike far more often than not.

Finally, Graham is fearless going over the middle of the field and running seam routes. Part of it is his extreme toughness; part of it is the league’s new emphasis on minimizing head hunting by defenders in the secondary.  Combine those things with an offensive scheme and a quarterback that loves to throw down the middle of the field, and you get the exceptional performance we are currently seeing out of Graham.

So far in this young season, Graham has established himself as the premiere receiving tight end in the NFL.  Though it is too early in his career to start pondering what his ceiling is, defenses simply have not found an answer for Graham so far. Combining exceptional talent with a system that is built to exploit what he does best, Graham is the best tight end in the NFL today.