NEW ORLEANS -- Saints wide receiver Chris Olave said he contemplated retiring from football last season after sustaining several concussions in 2024.
Olave missed the final eight games of the 2024 season after he was transported out of Bank of America stadium on a backboard following a hit to the head against the Panthers that put him in concussion protocol for the second time in three weeks. It was the fourth known concussion of his NFL career.
Olave resumed practicing a month later and sought the advice of concussion specialists, but didn't play in a game again until this season.
"It was a tough time last year," Olave said Sunday after starring in the Saints' 29-6 win against the New York Jets. "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 said that it was a "long offseason," and he spent a lot of time thinking things through and talking to his family about what to do next. He said ultimately he could not imagine his life without football.
"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.
Olave caught 10 passes for a career-high 149 yards and two touchdowns against the Jets. One was a 23-yard touchdown on a pass from rookie quarterback Tyler Shough and the other was a 38-yard touchdown from Taysom Hill.
Olave said earlier in the season that it took time to get back into the swing of things after returning to football. He admitted he felt nerves when returning to Charlotte to face the Panthers for the first time, but finished with 104 receiving yards and a touchdown in the Saints' Week 10 win.
"Especially early in the year, it's easy to be in practice and run routes and do all that without getting hit," Olave said. "But the first few games, it was tough going out there, kind of trying to get down and get used to playing again. But kind of after a few games, I kind of got more and more comfortable."
The 2022 first-round pick said there has been continuing conversations with the Saints about a contract extension. Despite past thoughts of retirement, Olave made it clear he wants to be in New Orleans in the future.
Olave has 1,044 receiving yards through 15 games this season.
"Yeah, they continue. 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's conversations 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."