METAIRE, La. -- New Orleans Saints tight end Adam Trautman is expected to miss the next four to six weeks after suffering a sprained MCL in Sunday's loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Trautman has battled inconsistency in his second NFL season. But he was having his best game to date on Sunday with five catches for 58 yards and a touchdown before suffering the injury while being tackled hard to the turf after a leaping catch.
The 6-foot-5, 253-pound tight end, who was drafted in the third round out of Dayton in 2020, had just 25 catches for 241 yards and one TD this season. But he is an exceptional run-blocker who was New Orleans' clear No. 1 tight end, playing more than 50 snaps per game.
Veterans Nick Vannett and Garrett Griffin, second-year pro Juwan Johnson and possibly Taysom Hill will be among those filling the void in his absence.
This is also the latest in an overwhelming barrage of injuries on the Saints' offense this year. Wide receiver Michael Thomas has missed the entire season with an ankle injury. Quarterback Jameis Winston suffered a season-ending ACL tear in Week 8. And running back Alvin Kamara and offensive tackles Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk were all sidelined last week, among several other injuries this year.
The Saints did not practice on Monday, but they were required to release an estimated injury report since they play on Thursday night against the Buffalo Bills. Kamara (knee) and Ramczyk (knee) were listed as not practicing, but Armstead (shoulder/knee) was listed as a limited participant.
It's possible that all three could be back as soon as Thursday since none of them was placed on short-term injured reserve.
