New Orleans Saints sign Daniel Graham

Former New England Patriots tight end Daniel Graham has been signed by the team that the Patriots most recently played, the New Orleans Saints per the team’s official Twitter account.

Used exclusively as a blocker, Daniel Graham played in all 16 games for the Tennessee Titans last season in his only year with the team. Before the 2011 season, Graham caught 102 passes in four seasons with the Denver Broncos. At 33, the Colorado product is no longer one of the top blocking TEs in the league as he was with the Patriots, but he’s still an adequate backup.

After being released by the Titans in June, Graham stated his intention to continue playing and received a tryout from the Atlanta Falcons a week later. As you can see, nothing came of it and Graham was never given an offer by the team. It was speculated at the time that the Pats would show interest in Graham, but that never happened especially with the quality of tight ends already on the roster; no room for a reunion.

Daniel Graham spent the first five seasons of his career with the Patriots after being the 21st pick in the 2002 NFL Draft. After catching 15 passes for 150 yards as a rookie, Graham broke out as a receiver for a career-high 38 receptions for 409 yards and four touchdowns. A year later in 2004, he set a career high for TD catches with seven and was one of the top ten tight ends in the league in both Super Bowl seasons for the Pats.

The Saints also signed UDFAs Nick Hixson and Paul Fenaroli, and they also released Nate Bussey, A.J. Davis, and Andrew Tiller to make room for the new moves. David Thomas is the Saints primary run blocker, and he is coming off of an injury-riddled season so it’s good for them to have a veteran backup in Daniel Graham.