Bottom Line

Whatever he does on the field this year, Moreau’s quick turnaround from cancer diagnosis to remission makes him a great story.

On the field, it can only help to follow his QB from the past four years. But Moreau will have a tough time finding regularly worthwhile target volume as long as TE Juwan Johnson and the WRs are healthy.

He’s interesting only as a late TE3 in best ball.

What We Learned Last Year

• Moreau set career highs in targets, catches, and yards for the second straight season, despite missing two games. He ranked fourth among Raiders in targets, fifth in receptions, third in yards, and tied for fourth in TD catches.
• The TE benefited from TE Darren Waller and WR Hunter Renfrow missing a combined 17 games.
• Moreau’s 12.7 yards per catch tied Kyle Pitts for fifth among 43 TEs with 30+ targets. He ranked 16th among that group in Pro Football Focus receiving grade, eight spots higher than new teammate Juwan Johnson.
• Moreau’s 1.22 yards per route ranked just 28th at the position. He checked in 32nd in catch rate.
• His 8.1-yard average depth of target ranked 14th, trailing Johnson by 1.7. Moreau ranked third at the position in yards after catch per reception (7.3), though, trailing only Chig Okonkwo and Jonnu Smith.
• Moreau has graded poorly as a run blocker each of his four seasons.

What to Expect in 2023

• The Saints signed the 26-year-old for pretty good money, once news came that his Hodgkins lymphoma wouldn’t stop him from playing in 2023. Moreau got a little more than $12 million total on a three-year deal, with $8 million of that guaranteed.
• That followed the two-year, $12 million extension – almost fully guaranteed – for Juwan Johnson.
• Combine those contracts with the Saints already ranking among last year’s leaders in multiple-TE sets, and it seems pretty clear we should expect Moreau and Johnson to both play plenty.
• Moreau certainly looks like the stronger candidate for inline reps. Adam Trautman spent 60.2% of his pass snaps there over the past three years (before being traded to Denver). That included a career-high 72.9% last season.
• If Moreau spends that much time inline, you can bet on a shorter ADOT than last season.
• Moreau spent his first four years on the same team as new Saints QB Derek Carr, whom Moreau calls one of his closest friends. Moreau also grew up in New Orleans and played his college ball at LSU. The QB connection figures to be more important. But the latter can only help Moreau’s transition to a new team and city.
• We’ll see about the team’s passing volume. The Saints ranked just 25th, 30th, and 26th in pass attempts the past three seasons. The investment in Carr ($150 million over four years, with $100 million guaranteed) seems to indicate more passing lean. But New Orleans also paid for RB Jamaal Williams and drafted RB Kendre Miller in Round 3, while investing little at WR.