The Facts:
With Graham's grievance hearing scheduled to begin one week from Tuesday, a league source indicated that the NFL Management Council will make a strong counterargument against the NFL Players Association's claim that he should be considered a wide receiver instead of a tight end for franchise-tag purposes. "The union's position is a naked cash grab," the source said. "It ignores Mr. Graham's use as a traditional tight end on roughly 60 percent of the snaps where he lined up within 4 yards of the tackle. It also ignores the historical use of the tight end position."
Reported by ESPN.com
Fantasy Football Diehards Line:
ESPN.com's Mike Triplett further quoted his source as explaining, "Since the days of Mike Ditka, coaches have split the tight end wide to gain information about the defensive set and gain a matchup advantage. According to the union's position, last year's All-Pro tight end was not a tight end and Mike Ditka was a wide receiver. ..." The NFLPA, meanwhile, will argue that Graham should be considered a wide receiver since he lined up for 67 percent of his snaps in either the slot or out wide last season. At stake is whether the New Orleans Saints should be required to offer Graham a one-year franchise-tag salary of $12.3 million instead of $7.035 million -- not to mention a tremendous amount of leverage in long-term contract negotiations. A neutral third-party arbitrator will have to determine what exactly constitutes lining up as a tight end. As Triplett notes, it's a debate that has grown in recent years as the modern passing game has continued to evolve. But this will be the first time the debate has actually reached the point of a grievance hearing. The outcome will be of interest to fantasy football owners.
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