Saints' Selection of TE Adam Trautman is the Perfect Move to Prepare for Jared Cook's Departure
By Andrew Gullotta
The New Orleans Saints provided fans with a bit of a stunner on Friday night when they traded ALL of their Day 3 picks to move up and select Dayton tight end Adam Trautman. Coach Sean Payton and the front office made the move after they saw one of their top-40 graded prospects fall late into the third round.
Trautman will fit perfectly into the Saints' offense in 2020 and beyond. Early on, the Dayton product will be another pass catcher for Drew Brees. His physical attributes as well his route running ability will be a matchup nightmare for defenses, especially with Pro Bowler Jared Cook lining up opposite him.
With the 105th pick in the #NFLDraft, the #Saints select TE Adam Trautman, Dayton! #SaintsDraft | @HancockWhitney pic.twitter.com/2RJqNRj9MQ
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) April 25, 2020
As Cook's career winds down and he enters a contract year in 2020, Trautman will be able to learn from one of the best and transition into becoming the full-fledged starter.
It's not like Saints fans haven't seen this before. The team drafted tight end Jimmy Graham in the third round back in 2010 in preparing for Jeremy Shockey's departure. Shockey took Graham under his wing for his final season before hanging up his cleats. Then, in 2011, Graham had the best season of any Saints tight end in history. Hopefully, the team can see a similar situation with the Dayton product.
Adam Trautman has similar traits to George Kittle when he’s in the open field. I’m not saying he’ll be that good but I think he’s going to be a solid weapon for years to come. pic.twitter.com/cxeF5lC6H0
— Chris Rosvoglou (@RosvoglouReport) April 25, 2020
New Orleans clearly had a short-term and long-term vision for Trautman when the team opted to trade up for him. Defenses will have a tough time containing the 6-5 255-pound tight end with all the other weapons on the Saints offense.