The New Orleans Saints created $5.5 million in salary-cap relief through Alvin Kamara’s pay cut. Their next major piece of business should be securing Chris Olave’s long-term future.
Olave enters the fifth and final year of his rookie contract with a fully guaranteed salary of approximately $15.49 million. He wants an extension, and the Saints have publicly treated him as a foundational part of the offense.
The receiver has also continued participating in the team’s offseason program. He has not threatened a holdout or allowed the negotiations to interrupt his work with quarterback Tyler Shough.
However, training camp is approaching and no agreement has been announced.
That delay does not necessarily mean negotiations are failing. Olave’s market is complicated by rapidly increasing receiver salaries, his career-best 2025 season and the medical evaluation surrounding the blood clot that caused him to miss the regular-season finale.
The Saints must protect themselves, but they cannot allow caution to become paralysis. If Olave remains healthy and produces another elite season, his price will only increase.
Chris Olave Has Earned an Extension
Olave delivered the best season of his professional career in 2025.
He started 16 games and established career highs with 100 receptions, 1,163 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. That performance earned him second-team All-Pro recognition and his first appearance on the NFL Top 100 list.
NFL players ranked Olave No. 64 entering the 2026 season. New Orleans Saints
The numbers tell only part of the story.
Olave remained productive while the Saints transitioned from their early-season struggles to Shough at quarterback. As the rookie became more comfortable, Olave emerged as his primary downfield and third-down target.
Their chemistry became one of the most encouraging developments of New Orleans’ 5–3 finish with Shough starting.
Olave has now exceeded 1,000 receiving yards in three of his first four seasons. His route running, acceleration and ability to separate at every level make him more than a complementary receiver.
He is a legitimate No. 1 option entering his athletic prime.
Why the Receiver Market Complicates Negotiations
The Saints are not negotiating against Olave’s rookie contract. They are negotiating against the rest of the NFL’s receiver market.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba reset the top of the position at approximately $42.15 million per year. Ten receivers now average more than $30 million annually, according to the NFL’s review of Olave’s contract situation. NFL.com
Olave’s representatives can also point toward other members of the 2022 draft class.
Drake London reportedly received a four-year, $141 million agreement. Garrett Wilson received a deal worth approximately $130 million. Those contracts provide direct comparison points because London, Wilson and Olave entered the league together.
New Orleans may argue that Olave should not receive top-of-the-market compensation. He has not yet produced a season approaching 1,500 yards, and his medical history introduces additional risk.
Olave’s side can respond that waiting will make the contract more expensive.
Another 1,100-yard season with Shough would strengthen Olave’s case. The 2027 franchise-tag calculation could also require a massive one-year commitment.
A fair agreement will likely need to place Olave among the NFL’s highest-paid receivers without surpassing the very top of the market.
The Medical Evaluation Cannot Be Ignored
Olave’s health is the most sensitive part of the negotiations.
He overcame the concussion concerns that disrupted his first three seasons and appeared in 16 games during his breakout 2025 campaign. However, doctors discovered a blood clot in his lung before the season finale.
The condition was caught early, and his recovery has reportedly progressed. Still, the Saints have continued taking a cautious approach, and Olave has not been described as fully cleared for unrestricted football activity.
This is not a situation that should be minimized for the sake of completing a contract.
New Orleans must rely on specialists to determine the long-term risks, appropriate treatment and likelihood of recurrence. Olave must also receive complete protection and transparency when evaluating his future.
The medical question may influence guarantees, insurance language and contract structure more than the average annual value.
That does not mean the Saints should use his health as leverage to pursue an unfair discount. It means the agreement must protect both sides against circumstances neither can completely control.
How the Kamara Savings Could Help
Kamara’s revised contract reduced his 2026 base salary from $11.5 million to $6 million, generating $5.5 million in immediate relief.
Those savings cannot fund an entire Olave extension. However, they can help New Orleans manage the contract’s first-year charge, signing bonus and remaining training-camp obligations.
An extension could also reduce Olave’s current $15.49 million cap figure, depending on its structure.
The Saints could convert a portion of his 2026 compensation into a signing bonus and spread the cap accounting across the new contract years. That approach could create additional short-term room.
New Orleans must use moderation.
The franchise has spent years pushing obligations into future seasons. An Olave extension should not become another contract that looks affordable only because the largest charges have been delayed.
Olave is young enough to justify a long-term commitment. The Saints should structure the agreement around realistic compensation rather than relying on void years and repeated restructures.
Film Room: Why Olave Is Essential to Tyler Shough
Olave’s value becomes clearer when examining how he affects coverage.
He can win vertically, but his game is not limited to deep routes. His ability to change speed and separate at the top of the route creates reliable throwing windows on intermediate concepts.
Against man coverage, Olave can use:
Speed releases against press coverage
Deep overs off play-action
Option routes from reduced alignments
Double moves against aggressive corners
Sideline comebacks when defenders protect against speed
Against zone coverage, he understands how to settle between defenders without drifting into the next area.
That awareness helped Shough during third-down situations. A young quarterback needs a receiver who arrives at the expected location at the expected time.
The Saints’ new weapons make Olave even more dangerous.
Rookie Jordyn Tyson gives New Orleans another vertical and outside threat. Juwan Johnson can attack linebackers and safeties. Etienne and Kamara force defenders to respect the backfield.
Opponents can no longer devote every coverage adjustment to Olave without creating favorable opportunities elsewhere.
What a Fair Contract Could Look Like
Olave’s next deal could reasonably fall below the market’s $40 million-plus ceiling but above the $30 million threshold now occupied by numerous top receivers.
A four-year extension in the range of $136 million to $148 million would produce an average between $34 million and $37 million per season.
The guarantees will matter more than the headline total.
New Orleans could offer strong protection through the first two or three years while using per-game roster bonuses or carefully constructed injury language later in the deal. Olave’s representatives will likely seek guarantees that recognize his 2025 production and the rapid growth of the position’s market.
The Saints should focus on securing Olave through his age-31 season without adding unnecessary years simply to inflate the total value.
The agreement should reward a foundational receiver while preserving sufficient flexibility to build around Shough.
Big Q’s Take
The Saints should complete this extension before the regular season.
Olave has handled the situation professionally. He reported, worked with his teammates and made it clear that winning remains his priority.
New Orleans should respond with the same professionalism.
The organization must finish its medical evaluation and negotiate responsible protections. Once those issues are settled, the football decision is straightforward.
Olave is 26 years old, has three 1,000-yard seasons and just produced 100 catches with nine touchdowns. He is one of the primary reasons the Saints believe Shough can make a second-year leap.
Allowing that type of player to enter a contract year without security creates unnecessary risk.
Why It Matters
The Saints are trying to establish a new offensive identity around Shough. That process becomes far more difficult if the quarterback’s top receiver enters every week with questions surrounding his future.
An extension would send a message to the locker room that the franchise rewards players who develop, produce and remain committed to the program.
It would also provide long-term continuity between Shough, Olave, Tyson and Moore’s offensive system.
The Saints do not need to win every negotiation. They need to recognize which players are essential to the next competitive window.
Olave is one of those players.
Prediction
The Saints and Olave will reach an agreement before Week 1, although the negotiations could extend beyond the beginning of training camp.
The final deal should average approximately $35 million annually, with medical protections influencing the guarantee structure.
Confidence level: 74 percent
Kamara’s pay cut gave the Saints additional room. Their next challenge is using that flexibility to secure the most important long-term player in Shough’s passing game.
Gee Bino is a senior writer and columnist for The Who Dat Daily, covering the New Orleans Saints, Pelicans, LSU athletics, and the Gulf South sports landscape. He specializes in roster construction, player development, salary cap strategy, and breaking news coverage. Follow The Who Dat Daily for daily news, analysis, and exclusive team coverage.
