Get to Know: WR Chris Olave

What a rookie season it was for Chris Olave.

However, what makes it even more impressive for me was the expectation he had going into 2022.

After the New Orleans Saints traded with Philadelphia to get a second first-rounder in the NFL Draft, New Orleans drafted Olave out of Ohio State, further proving how much the Saints just love their former Buckeyes.

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Olave had a strong rookie camp and offseason heading into the regular season, so the expectations started to ramp into a potential Rookie of the Year candidate.

However, he was sharing time with another Buckeye in Michael Thomas, who was back after missing all of 2021 with an injury. In those three games, Olave had 17 catches for 268 yards, but he never found the endzone.

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After MT went down, Olave took his game to the next level, racking up over 700 more yards and getting paydirt four times during the 2022 season.

Olave possesses the ability to play the short, intermediate, or long game. There’s no route that 12 can’t run.

For this reason, he’s going to be a very well-liked receiver in this group for the new Saints quarterback Derek Carr.

But where can the Saints’ #2 wideout get better?

I’d really like to see Chris Olave become a consistent guy every single play. Be a guy that can catch 7-10 passes a game and do it at any point in the field. Slant, go, post, all of the above.

I would also love to see him mentor the new guys. AT Perry, Kendra Miller over at running back, Bryan Edwards, Foster Moreau. All the new faces in that room will need guidance and advice to learn this new system. Even though he’s only a second-year guy, he can still take on that leader role.

The NFL is going to get put on notice early in the year: Chris Olave will be one of the most dangerous receivers in the entire league.

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