Juwan Johnson

Last year, Juwan Johnson finished with a career high in targets, receptions, and receiving yards as the TE11 in fantasy points per game. The Saints' offense caught fire in the back half of last season, and with the trade of Rashid Shaheed and no other complementary option stepping up alongside Chris Olave, Juwan Johnson saw his role grow. With the arrival of Jordyn Tyson, Bryce Lance, and Oscar Delp this offseason, Johnson could see his role diminish somewhat unless Tyler Shough takes a big step forward and he's able to support at least three receiving options weekly in the offense. Tyson's latest hamstring injury does create a lane for Johnson to reprise his late-season usage of 2025. Last year, among 54 qualifying tight ends, Johnson was 13th in target share, seventh in receiving yards per game, 15th in yards per route run, 11th in first-read share, and 23rd in first downs per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). Johnson could be a TE1 again this season, but he's best viewed as a TE2 with upside. With Tyson slated to miss the first few weeks of the NFL season, Johnson is also a nice candidate to pair with someone like George Kittle if you're waiting on tight ends in drafts.

Juwan Johnson finished 5th in catches (77) and third in yards (889) among TEs in 2025, but he only scored three TDs (TE15 in PPG). It wasn't always pretty (tied for league-high 7 drops per PFF), but the WR-TE convert made the most of his sheer volume. The Saints already paid him a decent chunk of change, and there's currently little competition in the receiver room outside of Chris Olave and former 7th-round pick DeVaughn Vele starting in Week 1. Johnson was the TE9 in PPG after the team traded Rashid Shaheed (9.1) before the deadline (with Tyler Shough making all but one of those starts). With Shough from Week 10 onward, Johnson averaged over 61 receiving yards per game. However, they did also add Noah Fant in free agency, and they drafted WR Jordyn Tyson and TE Oscar Delp in the first two rounds of the 2026 NFL Draft. But with Tyson sidelined due to a hamstring injury and Delp more of a 2027 bet, Johnson is emerging as a prime late-round TE target.

Juwan Johnson quietly put together the best season of his career in 2025, finishing with 77 catches, 889 yards and three touchdowns. That added up to a TE10 finish in half-point PPR scoring despite the relatively low TD count. It appeared that the arrival of rookie WR Jordan Tyson, the eighth overall pick in this year's draft, might cut into Johnson's target total. But Tyson is dealing with a hamstring injury that could keep him out for the first half of the season. Veteran Saints WR Chris Olave has had health issues as well. Johnson should continue to play a prominent role in head coach Kellen Moore's offense. The fast pace at which Moore operates his offense is another thing working in Johnson's favor.