Chris Olave Hospital Ball Saints OTAS Viral Video
© Denny Medley-Imagn Images // © Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Chris Olave finally returned to the New Orleans Saints for OTAs after a serious concussion forced him to miss the back-half of last season. The 24-year-old wide receiver needs his starting quarterback to better protect him over the middle if he is going to make it through the fourth year of his NFL career without a similar issue.
Another hospital ball could end his career.
Olave was drafted into the NFL out of Ohio State with the No. 11 overall pick in 2022. The two-time First-Team All-Big Ten player recorded back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons with New Orleans as a rookie and as a sophomore. His third year was cut short because Derek Carr hung him out to dry over the middle.
A brutal hit from a crashing safety knocked Olave out cold. It was a scary moment.
Chris Olave takes a nasty shot. Hope he's ok pic.twitter.com/LjFbFIxzpx
— Saints Film Room (@SaintsFilmRoom) November 3, 2024
Fortunately, Chris Olave made a full recovery from the collision and Carr is gone. Unfortunately, the Saints have four (five if you count Taysom Hill) quarterbacks who might not be any better. They will need
Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener are back. New Orleans passed on guys like Dillon Gabriel, Jalen Milroe, Kyle McCord, Will Howard and Shedeur Sanders to draft 25-year-old rookie Tyler Shough in the second round. Junior College standout Hunter Dekkers is the wildcard of the group after he was blackballed by the NCAA for gambling.
The quarterback competition could really go in any direction. I fully expect the Saints to play multiple different guys this season unless Shough really proves to be a dude over the next few weeks. Regardless of who ends up as the starter, he needs to protect Chris Olave. No more hospital balls!
I only bring this back up because of a new video from OTAs:
It's built right now.#Saints | @PeoplesHealth pic.twitter.com/NOJcgsSGef
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) May 28, 2025
Rattler left Olave completely stranded with a high ball right to the heart of the secondary. And that was against air without any pressure…
It’s an OTA hype video so no biggie, but these high and over the middle throws gotta stop. Especially to 12. pic.twitter.com/0WvPE4VL0v
— 𝙺𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚗 (@KevinWashJr) May 28, 2025
I know it is just one play from one session of one practice in May but it sets a concerning precedent. At some point, Chris Olave is just going to refuse to run routes over the middle. And can you blame him? I would not trust my quarterback after last season’s slobberknocker — no matter who it is. I would trust my quarterback even less if he was hanging me out over the middle during a defense-less practice in shorts.
Grayson Weir BroBible editor avatar