It's finally the time of year where OTAs and contract extensions are the hot topic around NFL media. One name that's been in circles just about every day is New Orleans Saints wide receiver Chris Olave.
Pro Football Focus's Bradley Locker even listed him as one of the top candidates in the league for an extension. That's not something that should surprise anybody, though. With 291 receptions for 3,728 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns, he's solidified himself as one of the Saints of the future. Furthermore, he's been one of the few bright spots on the team since the departure of Drew Brees and during the tumultuous Dennis Allen era.
Letting any player like that walk without a deal being offered would be like setting off a bomb in the locker room. Good thing that Mickey Loomis wants the negotiations to be over. "Obviously we'd love to have something done sooner than later," the general manager said via ESPN's Kat Terrell. "I'm sure Chris would as well, but we're not there yet."
The Saints need to extend Chris Olave sooner rather than later
It really is a good thing that Mickey Loomis wants to get the negotiations behind him, because the number that he'll have to pay Chris Olave is only going to get higher once the season starts. Especially when considering Jaxon Smith-Njigba's market-resetting new contract earlier this spring.
The Seattle Seahawks gave Smith-Njigba a four-year extension worth $168.8 million. $42.15 million annually; it's the highest average pay for a wide receiver in NFL history. Although Olave isn't expected to get that kind of money, it's still something that probably brought his contract negotiations to a screeching halt. That number is nothing to sneeze at.
What it did, though, was set the bar for the Saints and Olave's camp. If that's what a Super Bowl-winning WR1 gets, then a top receiver that is expected to bring the Saints to that very game should get something in the same ballpark.
A good example of what Olave's contract might look like is what the New York Jets gave their top dog, Garrett Wilson: four years, $130 million. With the cap space they're expected to have available to them in 2027, the Saints should easily be able to give Olave something he's worth.
Again, the Saints should get it done now. If he continues his performance from last season, then his final number might be closer to JSN's than Loomis would probably want.
Add us as a preferred source on Google