Saints receiver Chris Olave has suffered two concussions this year. After the most recent, suffered on Sunday, Olave will consult with specialists about his future.
Olave absorbed an illegal hit to the head during Sunday’s loss to the Panthers. He went to a local hospital for evaluation. Now, he’s in the process of working his way back.
“He wants to go thoroughly through the process and making sure he’s making the best decision for Chris Olave, removing football from that equation. . . . What’s the best decision for the person?” interim coach Darren Rizzi told reporters on Wednesday, via Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com. “So, my conversations with him and our medical staff, we’ve been thorough and his family’s going to be thorough with the process. I completely support that. I have five kids of my own, and if that was one of my kids, I would want to do the same thing.”
Olave has now suffered four concussions during his three-year NFL career.
“We’re more worried about Chris Olave the person and making sure that everything’s good,” Rizzi said. “Then once he goes through that process, we’ll bring it back to football to see how that fits in. When I say day to day, it sounds like coach-speak. He’s kind of seeing some specialists and we’ll go through the process.""
Ultimately, Olave has some big decisions to make. Beyond whether he wants to keep playing football, Olave apparently must decide whether to play for the Saints. Via Terrell, Olave’s brother Josh said this on social media when asked whether it’s worth it for Chris to keep playing: “Ain’t worth it in Nola, I’ll tell you that.”
A first-round pick in 2022, Olave is under contract through 2025. The Saints have an option for 2026. In both of his first two seasons, Olave surpassed 1,000 receiving yards.
