Chris Olave has agreed a four-year contract extension worth up to $132m with the New Orleans Saints, ensuring one of the NFL’s most productive young receivers will remain at the centre of the club’s attempted revival.

The deal, which reportedly contains $90m in guarantees, ties Olave to New Orleans through the 2030 season, while its $33m average annual value places him alongside Pittsburgh Steelers receiver D.K. Metcalf as the joint sixth highest-paid player at the position.

The Saints formally announced a multi-year agreement on Thursday without confirming its financial terms. Olave had taken part in the opening two practices of training camp but restricted his involvement to individual drills and walkthroughs while negotiations continued. That limited participation can now end before New Orleans begins padded practices, avoiding the possibility of a contract dispute intruding further into a camp carrying renewed optimism under head coach Kellen Moore.

“I think the biggest thing is there’s the business side and there’s the football side, obviously,” Moore said shortly before the agreement was reported. “And we know sometimes those two overlap. It’s inevitable. And I think communication is the key.

“As long as we all communicate and we’re all on the same page, I think we always have to remind ourselves everyone has the same goal. Everyone’s shooting for the same things. It’s just sometimes the business side takes a little bit of a lead on this for a matter of time and we’ll work through that.”

Olave had initially hoped to reach an agreement before camp opened. Rather than stay away while the talks continued, he attended voluntary offseason workouts and reported with the rest of the team this week.

“I’m committed to winning, first of all, and I feel like I’m a team player,” he told WWL Radio in June. “The contract is a whole different side of the game. It’s the business side. I feel like we’re going to come down to that before training camp. I hope we do, so we don’t affect the chemistry and stuff going into training camp, but I think it’s going to get done soon.”

The final agreement arrived two days later than Olave’s preferred timetable but before either side had allowed the negotiations to become confrontational. General manager Mickey Loomis praised the receiver’s approach when discussing the talks on the eve of camp, making clear that the Saints regarded Olave’s conduct as another reason to retain him.

“We want to get it done,” Loomis said. “Chris and his agent, I know they want to get it done. We all do. But it’s got to be right for both parties. Chris has been as enthusiastic and optimistic as anyone. Really, really appreciate the way he has conducted himself — and that’s not just this year. It’s every year with Chris. He’s an absolute joy to have on our team.”

Olave’s new contract follows the finest season of his four-year career. He established personal highs with 100 receptions, 1,163 yards and nine touchdowns in 2025, earning second-team All-Pro recognition despite New Orleans finishing 6-11. That production was particularly valuable during the Saints’ encouraging conclusion to the season. New Orleans won four of its final five games as rookie quarterback Tyler Shough strengthened his claim to the starting job, with Olave emerging as a central part of an offense that finally began to show signs of lasting progress.

The season also represented an important response to the concerns surrounding Olave’s health. He was restricted to eight games in 2024 after suffering at least two concussions, the second of which ended his campaign in November and prompted wider questions about his playing future. Olave returned to surpass 1,000 receiving yards for the third time in four NFL seasons, although another medical issue prevented him from completing the campaign. What he initially believed to be a bruised rib following a victory over Tennessee was subsequently diagnosed as a blood clot in his lung, detected after Olave underwent a CT scan and treated with blood-thinning medication. He missed the season finale and was limited during the Saints’ offseason programme, but received clearance to participate when training camp opened.

Committing $90m in guarantees to Olave therefore represents both a reward for his production and a clear expression of confidence in his health. The Saints had already exercised the fifth-year option on his rookie contract, guaranteeing him $15.49m for 2026, but allowing negotiations to drift into the season would have risked losing control of his longer-term future.

Selected 11th overall from Ohio State in 2022, Olave has caught 291 passes for 3,728 yards and 19 touchdowns across 55 regular-season appearances. His smooth route-running and ability to threaten every level of the field have remained consistent despite frequent changes at quarterback and five successive seasons without a New Orleans playoff appearance. Having established a rapport with his main target, Shough publicly supported Olave’s decision to remain involved during the negotiation process.

“I think more than anything it just shows he wants to be here,” the quarterback said during the offseason. “He wants to work hard. He’s doing that every single day. He likes being around the guys and I think he’s just such a value to this team that everybody understands. I think that’s just part of the business side of it. That happens, but more than anything, it shows how much he loves it here.”

Olave will now form the established half of a potentially formidable receiving partnership with Jordyn Tyson, whom the Saints selected eighth overall in April. Tyson was managed carefully through the offseason because of a recurring hamstring problem but returned to the field at the beginning of camp, and the two first-round picks are now expected to become primary targets for Shough as head coach Moore attempts to build upon the improvement shown late last season.