The murder case involving former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez has made many in the league look back on the NFL draft and how to evaluate players and just like how we looked at who the Raiders drafted instead of Hernandez in 2010, another name has come up linking to the pick in New Orleans Saints TE Jimmy Graham.
Graham was selected along with Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski in the 2010 NFL draft, sandwiched in between the two in the third round and he was the last tight end picked before Hernandez. Gronk was a second round pick and Hernandez was picked in the fourth, while the Saints decided on Graham in the third round with the 95th pick, which came 18 before Hernandez was taken.
Graham has emerged as one of the best tight ends in the league and while he has been overshadowed by Gronk, he may now take the mantle as the best as Gronk comes back from multiple surgeries and Hernandez is in jail for murder charges. There is no info about whether the Saints even thought about taking Hernandez, according to Pro Football Talk, but since he was the next tight end selected, there is chance he was on their board.
The Patriots took a chance on Hernandez due to his character issues from his time at Florida, but the Saints also took a chance on Graham, as he only played on season at Miami. Looking back now they clearly made the right choice, as he is still playing on his rookie deal and has been a model citizen for the team over the past few seasons, unlike Hernandez. Some players that were elected in between the two included Jacoby Ford and Mike Williams and chances are Graham will sign a long-term deal eventually.
Graham has been an excellent target for Drew Brees and with Gronk dealing with multiple injuries and Hernandez dealing with a murder case, he looks like the safest pick as well. Graham hasn't made a big deal about his contract either and after making 85 catches for 982 yards and nine touchdowns last season and 99 passes for 1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2011. Graham had some injury issues himself, but he has been a consistent target for Brees and now looks like the best young tight end in the league.
Graham has already scored 25 touchdowns in three seasons and he has missed just two games overall. He has proven to be a great receiver down the field despite dropping some balls occasionally and he came less than 20 yards from his second straight 1,000-yard season last year. Hernandez finished his Pats career with 175 receptions for 1,956 yards and 18 touchdowns.