Report: TE Jimmy Graham expected to sign 3-year deal with Packers
Mar 13, 2018, 1:16 PM | Updated: 2:08 pm
Jimmy Graham scored 18 touchdowns in the three years since the Seahawks traded for him. (AP)
(AP)
Jimmy Graham’s three-year stint in Seattle came to an end Tuesday: The league’s top-scoring tight end has reportedly agreed to a three-year deal with the Packers.
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The Seahawks originally acquired Graham as part of a blockbuster trade in March 2015 that sent center Max Unger and a first-round pick to the Saints.
After a torn pattelar season ended his first season in Seattle, Graham bounced back in 2016, appearing in all 16 games and recording 65 receptions for 923 yards and six touchdowns. He accrued fewer yards in 2017, but with his 10 touchdowns, he finished as the team’s leading scorer and the NFL’s highest-scoring tight end.
Graham was one of the Saints’ best offensive weapons during his tenure in New Orleans, but it took the Seahawks two years to figure out how to take advantage of Graham’s skill set as a dominant red zone threat. Nonetheless, Graham leaves Seattle holding the single-season franchise records by a tight end in receptions (65), yards (923), and touchdowns (10).
Who does Seattle still have at tight end?
Two of the Seahawks’ four tight ends, Graham and Luke Willson, entered free agency this month. Graham has since signed with Packers.
If Willson also departs, that leaves two tight ends on the roster: Nick Vannett and Tyrone Swoopes.
Vannett, 25, was the third tight end on Seattle’s depth chart last season. He saw significantly less playing time than Graham or Willson, but still doubled his production from his rookie season to finish with 12 catches for 124 yards and one touchdown.
Swoopes, 23, signed with Seattle as an undrafted free agent in 2017 and spent most of the season on the practice squad. Swoopes played two snaps in Seattle’s regular season finale against the Cardinals, but otherwise has not seen much playing time.
