A.T.

Perry

The Saints waived Perry last week after he dealt with a hand injury and was a healthy scratch to start the season. The former sixth-round pick totaled 12 catches for 246 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie but did not seem to have a role on the 2024 Saints. The Broncos now add him to their practice squad and the big target could get added to Bo Nix’s arsenal at some point.

Perry turned some heads as a rookie with a few big plays late in the season. He finished the year with 12 receptions for 246 yards and four scores. Perry missed the start of his second season with a hand injury and never managed to find a role after recovering. He has been a healthy scratch in recent weeks. Perry could get claimed by a team looking for a dart throw at wide receiver.

Perry missed Week 1 with the hand issue but got in a full week of practices ahead of the Saints’ matchup with the Cowboys. He will likely start the year behind veteran receiver Cedrick Wilson on the depth chart.

Perry missed all three practices this week because of the hand injury. Veteran receiver Cedrick Wilson had been playing ahead of him as the team’s WR3 in camp, so this doesn’t change much for the Saints. Rasheed Shahid and Chris Olave are the only Saints receivers worth rostering heading into Week 1.

Perry didn’t practice again Friday while dealing with his hand injury. The wideout could still line up against the Panthers for the season opener, but the back-to-back missed practices makes it unlikely. It was unlikely even if he was to go that he’d be a good bet for fantasy relevance, regardless of the injury status.

This is a new injury for the Saints’ No. 3 WR. Details have yet to be released as to the severity and his projected recovery timeline so it remains possible he suits up for Week 1. A mid-week injury is never ideal though. Perry is unlikely to command a high target share even if healthy but the team is also likely to be without rookie TE Dallin Holker (ankle) who failed to practice on Wednesday and Thursday. Their potential absences push a few more targets toward the Saints’ top-heavy pass-catching corps, particularly No. 1 WR Chris Olave.

Perry’s box score provides a potential sell-high moment for dynasty managers. Perry was once thought to be a candidate for the starting lineup but did not even start on Sunday, even with the first-team offense resting.

The box score numbers look good until you realize Perry didn’t record a target until the starters departed the contest, catching his passes from Jake Haener and Spencer Rattler. Perry continues to be listed as a starter on the team’s depth chart but playing this deep into a preseason game does not bode well for his chances of earning targets alongside Chris Olave and Rasheed Shahid. The additional playing time could also be attributed to head coach Dennis Allen’s previous comments this offseason that indicated the second-year wide receiver had numerous areas of his game to continue to improve.

Perry ends the regular season on a high note, but fantasy managers were expecting him to step up once Michael Thomas was put on the injured reserve. Even with this effort, the rookie topped 40 yards just twice in the 10 games he played on the year despite running a route on 66 percent of dropbacks after Thomas’ injury. On the season, Perry had 12 catches for 246 yards and four touchdowns but three of his catches went for over 20 yards, which is a pretty impressive ratio. The rookie sixth-round pick was a big-play threat at Wake Forest too and could step into an even bigger role next season if the Saints move on from Thomas. Still, Perry is unlikely to emerge as a complete full-time receiver at the NFL level which limits his fantasy value, so while he could have big play potential with Derek Carr at quarterback, he’d be a boom-or-bust option.

Perry’s late fourth quarter score was his lone target. He got matched up 1-on-1 with Cobie Durant and did not disappoint. Perry is popping up for the occasional big play but seeing so little volume he is struggling to even crack the top 70 at receiver.