Source: Saints’ Chris Olave out for finale due to blood clot
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Saints feeling optimistic heading into the offseason (0:31)
Katherine Terrell breaks down why spirits are high for the Saints as the offseason approaches. (0:31)
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Katherine TerrellJan 1, 2026, 11:30 AM ET
- Katherine Terrell came back to ESPN to cover the New Orleans Saints in the summer of 2022. She left the company in 2019 after joining in 2016 to cover the Cincinnati Bengals. Katherine is a graduate of LSU and a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native, and she has covered the NFL since 2013.
NEW ORLEANS — Saints wide receiver Chris Olave developed a blood clot in one of his lungs and will miss the team’s season finale against the Atlanta Falcons, a source confirmed to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Olave, who was listed on the injury report with an illness after missing Wednesday’s practice, has no history with blood clots and is expected to recover within the next month. He will be able to participate in the Saints’ offseason program when it begins in April, the source said.
Olave, 25, will finish his fourth season with the Saints with a career-best 1,163 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. The 2022 first-round pick will head into his fifth-year option if he and the Saints do not reach a contract extension before the 2026 season begins.
Olave, who has been dealing with a recurring back injury this season, was able to play in a win against the Tennessee Titans in Week 17 after receiving treatment on Friday and Saturday.
He said last week that his goal was to play all 17 games after missing the second half of the 2024 season after sustaining two documented concussions.
«I think it’s going to be my first time in my NFL career playing 17,» Olave said Sunday. «It means a lot, man. One of my goals, one of my main goals for this year is trying to play all 17. Playing through injuries, playing through all that. So I’m super grateful, like I said. Got to give all glory to God to be in this position. We just got to finish next week.»
Olave said he contemplated retirement at one point last season after seeking opinions from concussion specialists.
«It was a tough time last year,» Olave said after the Saints’ win against the New York Jets on Dec. 21. «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.»
New Orleans Football first reported the news.
