Veteran wide receiver, Ted Ginn, Jr. has agreed to terms with the New Orleans Saints. News of the deal was first reported by ESPN’s Dianna Russini.
Wide Receiver Ted Ginn Junior is signing with the New Orleans Saints per sources
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) March 9, 2017
Ted Ginn Jr. Signs
Ginn spent the previous two seasons with the Carolina Panthers. In 2015, he led the team with a career-high ten touchdown catches as Carolina finished the regular season with a 15-1 record. In the playoffs, he averaged 21 yards per catch and caught four passes for 74 yards in the Panthers 24-10 loss to the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50.
Much like the team as a whole, Ginn came back down to earth last season. Though he finished with 752 receiving yards, the second-highest total of his career, he managed just four touchdown receptions. The Panthers went on to miss the playoffs, ending the regular season with a 6-10 record.
The Cleveland native previously played for Carolina back in 2013 on a one-year contract. That year, he caught five touchdown passes which was second on the team behind tight end Greg Olsen. The Panthers finished the season at 12-4 but lost in the divisional round of the playoffs to the San Francisco 49ers.
Ginn offers an added dimension on special teams. Over the course of his ten year career, he has a total of 9,339 combined punt and kick return yards. That currently ranks as the 12th highest total in NFL history. He averages 22.8 yards per return with seven resulting in touchdowns.
Career
The 31-year-old originally came into the league in 2007 when the Miami Dolphins selected him in the first round of that year’s draft (ninth overall). A year later, he finished with 790 yards receiving which remains the highest total of his career. After three seasons, the Dolphins traded Ginn to the 49ers for a fifth round pick.
In San Francisco, Ginn struggled to gain a foothold as a receiver but continued to be a dynamic special teams player. Despite just 384 receiving yards and a touchdown reception in three seasons as a Niner, he managed 3,158 return yards and three touchdowns. Ginn’s 27.6 yards per kickoff return in 2011 was third best in the league that year.
Ginn enjoyed a standout collegiate career at Ohio State. Initially recruited as a defensive back by former Buckeye head coach Jim Tressel, he excelled on the other side of the ball as well as on special teams. His six punt return touchdowns in an OSU uniform remains a Big Ten record.
