Juwan

Johnson

According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, the deal carries $30.75 million base value and a max value of $34.5 million, with $21.75 million guaranteed. The 28-year-old is coming off his best season of his career with 50 catches for 548 yards and three touchdowns. He’ll be a safety valve for Derek Carr — or whomever ends up at quarterback for the Saints — and be a solid, if unspectacular, tight end option for the 2025 campaign.

Conklin should have little issue finding a suitor in free agency. The reliable 29-year-old has caught at least 51 passes while producing at least 499 receiving yards in four straight seasons. Hughes notes that the Jets are expressing interest in free-agent tight ends. Juwan Johnson, per Hughes, is the “top target” for the Jets. While John Bates might be a more reasonable fill-in acquisition.

We’re hearing the boys could be back in town. Kosmider describes Johnson as the “target who may make the most sense” for the Broncos and says Johnson could give the Broncos a “down-the-field element from the tight end position they haven’t had during Payton’s tenure.” Hill is listed more as another “player to watch,” but that seems to mostly be because we’re not sure if and when he’ll play in 2025 following a December ACL tear. Hill turns 35 in August and, though he’s under contract with the Saints, they’d save $10 million in cap space by making him a post-June 1 release. If you thought Payton was trying to prove a point with his earlier usage of Taysom, just wait until you see what happens next December.

Johnson impressed over the final two games of the season, finishing with 12 catches for 146 yards. The speedy tight end finishes with a career-high in catches with 50 along with a new high mark of 548 receiving yards, but he was only able to find the end zone three times. Johnson will turn 29 next year and isn’t likely to make a vast improvement even with better quarterback play from New Orleans in 2025, but he should remain a useable — if frustrating — TE2.

Johnson led the Saints in both targets and catches, doubling the next-closest player in each category. He could have had a much bigger day too, but he dropped a potential 15-yard catch and had a 40-yard catch called back due to a holding penalty. It certainly doesn’t make us feel good to trust Spencer Rattler in fantasy leagues, but if you’re still playing in Week 18, Johnson has a big enough role that he could be a useful fantasy option at tight end.

That makes back-to-back “LP” designations for the 6-foot-4 tight end. He’s coming off a game where he only received two targets in the blowout defeat to the Packers, and his fantasy value is extremely limited if he does get the chance to go in Week 17 against Las Vegas.

The Saints were shutout for the first time of any team in the 2024 season with Spencer Rattler under center, with the team managing just 194 yards of total offense while turning the ball over twice. In all, it was a miserable outing for the entire offense, and Johnson’s returns were no different. Johnson is unlikely to hold fantasy value for as long as Rattler remains the starter in New Orleans.

Johnson played through the foot injury last week without any issues. He caught four passes for 50 yards and a score. Down nearly every Week 1 starter across the skill position board, the Saints will rely heavily on Johnson versus Washington. He is working his way up the TE2 ranks to close the year.

Johnson was limited throughout Week 14 before finishing as the overall TE3 on the week, catching 4-of-5 targets for 50 yards and one touchdown. He is once again TE1-viable, albeit as a low-floor option with either Jake Haener or Spencer Rattler under center.

The 50 yards were a new season high, while the touchdown was Johnson’s third. Decent enough TE2 returns, though now it appears Derek Carr has a season-ending wrist injury. With bye weeks over, Johnson is not a compelling TE2 or second FLEX even with a porous Ravens pass defense on tap for Week 15.