NFL Draft 2022 tracker: Live blog and pick-by-pick analysis
The Saints stuck to the script Thursday night.
They moved up again instead of down, trading their 16th pick along with a third-rounder and a fourth-rounder to the Commanders to move up five spots. They also continued their tradition of adding to an already lengthy list of Ohio State players on their roster.
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The only thing that wasn’t surprising was the pick itself. The Saints prioritized their biggest need first by selecting Ohio State wide receiver Chris Olave, who will be an instant complement to wideout and fellow Buckeye Michael Thomas on the offensive side of the ball.
“He’s one of the best receivers in the league. To go in there and learn from him is going to be huge. We already have a little relationship already,” Olave said of playing with Thomas, who sent several happy tweets about the pick on Thursday night.
The Saints also selected Northern Iowa tackle Trevor Penning with the 19th pick Thursday.
"I am going to give the Saints everything I have," – @chrisolave_
📺: 2022 #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC pic.twitter.com/hLfDOvuy9l
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) April 29, 2022
• Draft grades: Sheil Kapadia weighs in on the picks
• Big board best available: Who’s left from Dane Brugler’s Top 300?
Big Board ranking: Olave was No. 17 on Brugler’s Top 300. Other players who were available were Alabama WR Jameson Williams (No. 13 on the Big Board), Washington CB Trent McDuffie (No. 12), Florida State edge rusher Jermaine Johnson (No. 11), Utah LB Devin Lloyd (No. 9) and Notre Dame S Kyle Hamilton (No. 6). Other than Williams, none of those players would have filled a top need like Olave, although Hamilton would have made sense as well.
Introduction (from Bill Landis’ profile of Olave): “Savvy” is probably the best word to describe Olave. He can run the entire route tree, has different releases and has mastered every one of them. He can change speeds within the route to get defenders off balance, but the thing he really excels at is reading defenders’ body language, reading their eyes and getting into their blind spots to create the small bit of separation he needs.
How he fits: The Saints lacked a consistent deep threat outside of Deonte Harris last year, and trying to fix that by re-signing Kenny Stills didn’t work. Olave has the ability to be that guy. If Thomas comes back healthy this year, he’ll be the workhorse, but Olave will be right there as a complement to him and a good changeup from what they had before. There might be some changes with offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael calling the plays this year instead of former coach Sean Payton, but the elements of the offense they had in 2021 likely will be largely intact.
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Second guess? It felt like the Saints got wind that someone else had their eyes on Olave or one of the other top receivers and felt compelled to make a move, which turned out to be smart when three receivers came off the board after they picked. The Saints didn’t really have many options at tackle after the top three came off the board, although Hamilton or defensive tackle Jordan Davis were still available after the trade. If they had to make a move up, Olave made the most sense.
Rookie impact: The Saints are going to expect Olave to play early and often. They feel like they are a team that can contend for the playoffs again this year if they can stay healthy, and the wide receiver cupboard was bare enough that he can get his share of catches right away. One question is whether he plays on special teams, as he was on punt coverage in college and had two blocked punts.
Depth-chart impact: Olave projects as the likely No. 2 or No. 3 receiver on the Saints before he even takes a snap, and one glance at the room explains why. Marquez Callaway became the No. 1 receiver by default last year, but led the group with just 698 receiving yards. With Thomas coming back, the depth chart will look something like this: Thomas, Olave, Callaway, Tre’Quan Smith and Harris.
Fast evaluation: It was a mild surprise that the Saints had to move up to get him, but Olave felt like the safe pick to make. There’s a reason he was one of the names most commonly paired with the Saints in offseason mock drafts and evaluations, and it’s because the pick and the position made the most sense. While some might wonder why the Saints traded up to get a receiver and not a quarterback, it’s because they clearly think they can fix the offense this year with Jameis Winston instead of reaching for a new signal caller in 2022.
(Photo of Chris Olave: Jeff Speer / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
