Latest news with #NoahFant
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
New Orleans Saints schedule visit with former Seattle Seahawks TE Noah Fant
The New Orleans Saints have a thin tight end room, but it may not be done growing, as they have recently scheduled a visit with former Seattle Seahawks tight end Noah Fant per NFL insider Jordan Schultz. Fant was a first-round pick back in the 2019 NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. While he never really broke out to become the superstar tight end that some projected, he has been a reliable receiving option over the years, which is something that the Saints could greatly use. Over his six years between the Broncos and Seahawks, the 27-year-old averaged 50 catches for 550 yards and 2.5 touchdowns per season. As crazy as it may sound, that would have made him the leading receiver on last year's squad. Starting tight end Juwan Johnson had that exact season with 50 catches for 548 yards and three touchdowns. Fant reportedly also had a visit with the Cincinnati Bengals that was "positive," per Schultz, but he left without signing anything. New Orleans will now have the chance to swoop in and add him, should their meeting go well. Tight end is a massive need, especially for the start of the season. Taysom Hill is still healing from his brutal ACL tear from last year, Foster Moreau is still recovering from a knee injury that has him starting camp on the PUP list and Dallin Holker just recently retired after never recovering from an ankle injury. Johnson, Jack Stoll, Moliki Matavao, Michael Jacobson, Seth Green and Treyton Welch are the current healthy tight end room in New Orleans. Even for a team that is a soft rebuild, that is lacking in playmaking talent to start a season. Fant would be a fantastic addition. This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: NFL free agency: Saints schedule visit with ex-Seahawks TE Noah Fant
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Juwan Johnson lobbies for Saints to sign Noah Fant: 'It'll get us going, man'
It's easy to see why the New Orleans Saints want Noah Fant. He's looked good in black and gold before, having come out of the same Iowa-to-NFL factory that sent tight ends like T.J. Hockenson, George Kittle, and Sam LaPorta to the pros in recent years. The former first-round pick visited New Orleans on Friday after previously meeting with the Cincinnati Bengals, but he hasn't signed anything just yet. Count veteran starter Juwan Johnson among the number who'd like to see Fant stick around. A tight end himself, Johnson sees Fant as a great fit in the offense rather than competition for his services. Kellen Moore has called a lot of passes to his tight ends in previous stops, and there's no reason to think the coach won't keep it going with the Saints. 'He can add so much,' Johnson told reporters after Friday's training camp practice. 'One, he can add a lot of explosiveness to the offense and I'd be extremely excited to have him here. I mean, you've had guys like Ben Watson, Jimmy Graham here before. You've had guys like that before that's really been explosive. And so you can just think of things like that. I'm not going to go the whole, like, Gronk and Aaron Hernandez thing. ... But that's the kind of potential something like that can have.' Their stats are surprisingly similar. Over the last three years, Fant has played in 48 games, catching 130 passes for 1,400 yards and scoring five touchdowns. In that same span, Johnson has appeared in 46 games, catching 129 balls for 1,424 yards with 14 touchdowns. Johnson has taken some heat from fans for only showing up in garbage time; when trailing in the fourth quarter, he's caught 29 receptions for 307 yards, with four touchdowns. Fant has caught 30 passes for 293 yards and scored three touchdowns. That's a wash. Obviously there's more going on here than their raw numbers. Fant has been asked to do more with the ball in his hands; his average depth of target the last three years is 6.2 yards, and he's paced 5.6 yards before contact per catch with 5.2 yards gained after the catch per reception. Compare that to Johnson, who has, on average, been targeted further downfield (8.2 yards) which has led to more yards gained before contact (6.9) but fewer yards gained after the catch (4.2). Johnson has broken more tackles (7, to Fant's 3) but he's also dropped more passes (9 against Fant's 3). More downfield opportunities has helped Johnson convert more first downs (75) than Fant (65), too. The point is that each player has made plays for their offense, but they've gone about it in different ways. For his second point, Johnson says Fant would bring some camaraderie to the tight ends room: "Having a guy like Noah here walking around the facility adds a vibe. ... I think it'd be so good. It'll give, honestly, the locker room a good boost and it'll get us going, man. Like I said, it's never like a competition. It's more camaraderie and collaboration. And that's something that I've always took the approach of when you see guys added into the room." Would Fant add more to the offense? Sure. He could fit right in as a safety valve in the short area who can reliably catch a pass and fight through contact to pick up a first down. His role wouldn't overlap much with Johnson as more of a vertical threat who can bully smaller defensive backs and pick up chunks of yards at a time. There's a world where they can coexist. But is that worth the price for the Saints? Fant left town without a deal after his visit on Friday so he's at least considering his options. We'll have to wait and see whether he circles back for a teamup. This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: NFL free agency: Starter pushes for Noah Fant to sign with Saints
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
New Orleans Saints schedule visit with former Seattle Seahawks TE Noah Fant
The New Orleans Saints have a thin tight end room, but it may not be done growing, as they have recently scheduled a visit with former Seattle Seahawks tight end Noah Fant per NFL insider Jordan Schultz. Fant was a first-round pick back in the 2019 NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. While he never really broke out to become the superstar tight end that some projected, he has been a reliable receiving option over the years, which is something that the Saints could greatly use. Over his six years between the Broncos and Seahawks, the 27-year-old averaged 50 catches for 550 yards and 2.5 touchdowns per season. As crazy as it may sound, that would have made him the leading receiver on last year's squad. Starting tight end Juwan Johnson had that exact season with 50 catches for 548 yards and three touchdowns. Fant reportedly also had a visit with the Cincinnati Bengals that was "positive," per Schultz, but he left without signing anything. New Orleans will now have the chance to swoop in and add him, should their meeting go well. Tight end is a massive need, especially for the start of the season. Taysom Hill is still healing from his brutal ACL tear from last year, Foster Moreau is still recovering from a knee injury that has him starting camp on the PUP list and Dallin Holker just recently retired after never recovering from an ankle injury. Johnson, Jack Stoll, Moliki Matavao, Michael Jacobson, Seth Green and Treyton Welch are the current healthy tight end room in New Orleans. Even for a team that is a soft rebuild, that is lacking in playmaking talent to start a season. Fant would be a fantastic addition.
USA Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Former Seahawks TE Noah Fant to work out with Cincinnati Bengals
The Seattle Seahawks made the decision to move on from veteran tight end Noah Fant prior to the start of training camp. However, it appears Fant won't have to wait long until he finds his third NFL team. According to NFL insider Jordan Schultz, Fant will have a workout with the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, according to reporting from Wednesday. Schultz is also reporting the Bengals won't be the only suitors for Fant's services. Fant had a strong inaugural season with the Seahawks in 2022, recording 50 receptions for 486 yards and four touchdowns. However, Fant only had one more score in 2023 and 2024 combined, and it came in a meaningless Week 18 game last year when Seattle had already been eliminated from the playoffs. Meanwhile, rookie Elijah Arroyo is already turning heads at training camp. We at Seahawks Wire will continue to monitor the situation, and deliver updates as they arrive regarding Fant's future new home.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bengals to host free-agent former Seahawks tight end Noah Fant, per report
The Cincinnati Bengals are scheduled to host free-agent tight end Noah Fant for a visit July 24, according to a report via Twitter/X from Jordan Schultz. Fant, 27, was released by the Seattle Seahawks. Schultz reported that multiple teams have expressed interest, and Cincinnati will be his first visit. Fant, a first-round pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2019 NFL draft, played three seasons for the Broncos and three for the Seahawks. Fant had 48 catches for 500 receiving yards with a touchdown in 14 games in 2024. He has 300 receptions for 3,305 receiving yards with 15 TDs over six seasons. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Noah Fant Bengals visit: Free-agent tight end coming to Cincinnati
