Saints WR Chris Olave admits he considered early retirement: 'It was a tough time'

After hauling in a career-best 10 receptions for 149 yards and two touchdowns during Sunday's 24-9 win over the New York Jets, an emotional New Orleans Saints wide receiver Chris Olave stepped to the post-game podium with gratitude. He admitted he nearly retired last season.

After missing the final eight games of 2024 due to several concussions and being taken off the field on a backboard against the Carolina Panthers, the former first-round pick detailed what went through his head at that time.

"It was a tough time last year," Olave said. "I was only 24 years old, contemplating retirement, especially with the head injuries, but I prayed about it. My fam, my close fam was around me. They stuck by my side and I just gave it another try, another chance. And it's been a great year."

Olave initially denied retirement consideration over the summer, but after a "long offseason," he received encouragement to continue what he started with the Saints. Olave leads New Orleans with a career-high 92 catches for 1,044 yards and eight touchdowns.

"My parents, my brothers and all my close people, I felt like I leaned on them a lot and they helped me get out the situation and I'm super grateful to be where I am today," Olave said.

Prior to his injury last season, Olave caught 32 passes for 400 yards and one touchdown in eight games. Nearing the end of his fourth NFL season, Olave has reeled in 283 catches for 3,609 yards and 18 scores as the franchise's most reliable pass-catching threat.

Olave said there have been talks with New Orleans about a contract extension throughout the season and he hopes to stay with the Saints for the foreseeable future. He is signed through 2026 after the team picked up his fifth-year option.

"It's been a clear communication, but I ain't really focused on that right, no," Olave said. "I just finished trying to finish the year off, it's been a couple conversations here and there, but I just want to prove that I'm one of the top receivers in the league year-in, year-out when I got a full year. So I've just got to finish these last two (games) strong, and that conversation's going to come.

"This is where I want to be, man. They took a chance on me. They traded up in the draft to be able to come get me. They've been nothing but good to me. They was here for me last year when I was going through that tough time, but they told me to take my time. They stood by my side. And even this year, when Kellen (Moore) came in, he still believed in me through the ups and downs this year, he kept coming to me. I'm super grateful for that and I can't thank the organization enough for that."