Maybe they should trade him b/c I doubt Bevell will ever maximize his talent or use him like he should/could be used.
In NO he was an annual Pro Bowl attendee as a receiving TE. He was an offensive force of nature with Brees and an OC who was willing to use him in all sorts of different ways. Here he is under-utilized afterthought, used only with an occasional mid-range hook route where his length is used, or a short pass where there is little RAC chance or an occasional seam route that is more than often wide open but there is zero chance the OLine can protect RW long enough to allow it to happen. When it does it succeeds. Period. He needs to be used better, with short fades using his height, slants using his length, short hooks where the chains are moved. It is a criminal waste of talent for him to be so under-utilized. I don't believe our OC has even scratched the talent he has. Our owner was very excited to acquire him and it is a real shame he has not yet been able to show his talent here. Somehow in the 3rd season here he needs to used instead of being an after thought.
If there is a failing of Bevell it is his regrettable inability to max out the talent the team has at TE. They are a perpetual afterthought. My great friend Siouxhawk who reminds us that as much as many dislike the play calls made by Bevell the last 6 years have been the best in franchise history. Sioux is right. Just about every team record is threatened or has been well surpassed by his O, crap OLines and all. That though doesn't address Bevell's blind spots and inability to quickly change gears or adjust well to what the opposition is giving him, or to adjust to what his team can't presently do. It's a true blind spot for him. Imagine a team with two TEs that needed to accounted for play after play. Graham is a talent that the team is fortunate to have, he's just very poorly under used.
I call BS on the he shrinks, has checked out, doesn't want to play here anymore, has not developed a relationship with RW thoughts expressed here. The team has simply not used him properly, he's a receiver not a blocker, use him as a receiver TE and take advantage of his exceptional talent and length. The argument may come he broke the team's TE receiving record last year coming off a career threatening injury the season prior where his targets were few and far between. That argument is Bevell knows how to use him, whatever I say, he can be so much more. Unfortunately unless Bevell learns that he can be better used he's wasted here.
Same argument different season. His talent is being wasted here.
If the team wants a blocking TE the use one, and stop the pretense we have a perpetual Pro Bowl potential quality receiving TE that is rarely targeted.
His time here has been disappointing because he could be so much more. It's frustrating to watch when the safety valve for RWs immediate under duress misery of a weak can't pass block OLine could be addressed by a creative use of Graham.
All the trade comments are sadly with respect Maddenesque. I doubt he gets traded but not renewing him at his wish might be the reality.