Tyler Shough and the New Orleans Saints offense just took another major blow. Shough was already working under less than ideal circumstances, and they just got worse. Chris Olave will miss the season finale versus the Atlanta Falcons.
A blood clot was discovered in Olave's lung. The Saints wide receiver was hospitalized this week to remove it. It's an injury that creates concern, but it was luckily discovered early. That reduces the long term concerns around the blood clots.
Olave posted an update from the hospital bed and he seems to be in good spirits. He's fought through adversity throughout the start of his career, and this is another battle the receiver will look to overcome.
A full season has eluded Chris Olave yet again but his point has been proven
The biggest knock in Olave's short career has been injury history. The wide receiver's history with concussions is well documented. In each of his first three years in the league, he suffered at least one concussion. In 2024, Olave had two concussions that cost him the majority of his season.
Whether it was multiple concussions in a season or the severity of the concussions, Olave pondered retirement over the offseason. His response? Olave delivered the best season of his career, overcame the anxiety returning to Bank of America Stadium and, most importantly, showed he could go a year without concussions.
Unfortunately for Olave, he still wasn't able to hit the 17 game milestone, but concussions weren't the reason. It's a mark that's been elusive throughout the career, so it would have been major for him to accomplish. Olave even mentioned that it was one of his goals coming into the season.
Olave spent the year fighting through a nagging back injury. It never seemed serious enough to put his availability even in question, let alone jeopardy, at any point in the season. It's unfortunate to have the year cut short at the last minute, but this isn't something that should be expected to recur. Dodging a concussion, or any football injury, is still a win