Sean Payton Explains Why Broncos Coveted TE Adam Trautman
The NFL draft board wasn't falling ideally for the Denver Broncos when it came to the tight end position. So when an opportunity arose to acquire a proven guy whom Broncos head coach Sean Payton had a history with, it was a no-brainer to pull the trigger on Adam Trautman.
In a draft-day trade with the New Orleans Saints, the Broncos landed Trautman and the No. 257 pick — who, incidentally, became Oregon center Alex Forsyth — in exchange for pick 195. After the draft, Payton broke down Trautman's skill set.
“Describing the player—he's the versatile tight end that can play the ‘F’ tight end. He played a lot, most recently, on the ball. Generally, when you draft a tight end out of college, they do one thing better than the other. [Usually a] blocker first."
In Payton's estimation, Trautman was more than a blocker coming out of college. And Trautman's receiving skills were utilized in his first couple seasons. But after Payton stepped down as head coach in New Orleans, Trautman was relegated to a blocking role, which the player didn't agree with.
"When we drafted Adam, we felt like was one of those guys that was solid in both areas," Payton said. "We utilized him depending on who was up and who was down and who was healthy—both inline and at the ‘F’ position."
As the board was falling, and Payton knew that Trautman had "initiated" a request for the Saints to trade him, he and Broncos GM George Paton began comparing him to handful of prospects at the same position with third-round grades. Ironically, Trautman was a Saints' third-round pick back in 2020 out of the small school Dayton.
At the end of the day, though, Payton saw an opportunity to reunite with Trautman — who hauled in a career-high 27 receptions for 263 yards and a pair of scores in Payton's last season in New Orleans — and bring a complete tight end to the Broncos' roster.
"He's clean with great makeup and great character," Payton said of Trautman. "We felt this was one of the needs for us coming in. We couldn't force that. When we pass that little area or sweet spot of tight ends and maybe drafted another player yesterday, this kind of came up and we both felt like flipping picks. All of a sudden, we’re getting a player that we have a clear vision for... He’s coming in with his versatility as a blocker, but then as a receiver.”
The Broncos signed veteran tight end Chris Manhertz in the early stages of free agency, a player known mostly for his blocking acumen. Manhertz balanced out the presence of Greg Dulcich and Albert Okwuegbunam — two very talented tight ends who rock at catching passes but underwhelm as blockers.
With Trautman in the fold, expect Payton to run a lot of two-tight-end sets to not only make way for the running game, but give a more-insulated Russell Wilson additional weapons to distribute the ball to in the play-action game.
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