3 Saints players that are absolute must-haves for fantasy football
By Mason Nunez
After a disappointing season for the New Orleans Saints, we are now 30 days away from kickoff. With the season so close on the horizon, fantasy drafts are creeping even closer if not already underway. Come draft day, you’re going to find yourself in a position to draft players that can potentially make or break your fantasy team.
Since 2006, Sean Payton and Drew Brees have led the New Orleans Saints to a historical stretch of high-octane offenses. With skill players such as Reggie Bush, Marques Colston, Jimmy Graham, and a personal favorite of mine, PPR (point per reception) stud Pierre Thomas, the Saints have had juggernaut offenses loaded with fantasy potential.
That was the case until 2021.
Following Hall of Fame QB Drew Brees’ retirement, veteran QB Jameis Winston took over the reins of the offense. Unfortunately, due to an avalanche of injuries to key contributors like Michael Thomas, Erik McCoy and Winston, the offense was unable to hit its stride and ended up in the basement of the league, ranking 32nd in Passing, 15th in Rushing, and 28th in total yards.
The Saints front office did not take this lightly, making aggressive offseason moves to sign Pro Bowl WR Jarvis Landry and drafting college standouts WR Chris Olave and OT Trevor Penning. With these additions and the return of Michael Thomas, this New Orleans team looks poised to return to the top of the league’s offensive leaderboards, skyrocketing these Saints playmakers into fantasy stardom.
All stats courtesy of ESPN and ESPN Fantasy unless noted otherwise
Chris Olave
The Ohio State standout has been making noise in training camp alongside fellow Buckeye alum Michael Thomas. One thing the New Orleans front office loved about Olave coming into the league was how NFL-ready he was.
Olave was an absolute gamer while at Ohio State, constantly torching Big Ten secondaries with his crisp route running and game-breaking speed. According to Fantasy Pros, Olave is being ranked as WR47 despite his immense talent.
With a full preseason under his belt, Olave’s skills are going to lead to a plethora of opportunities to make big-time plays no matter the defender he’s facing. Olave’s pure athletic freakishness and being mentored by All-Pro WR Michael Thomas and Pro Bowl WR Jarvis Landry, this rookie WR is poised to compete for the title of OROY while having a highlight-filled rookie campaign.