Alright, let’s talk about this Olave versus Ridley thing. It’s been bouncing around in my head for a bit, especially when I was tinkering with my fantasy lineups and draft boards.
So, I sat down, really started digging into it. Didn’t just glance at projections, you know? I actually started thinking about what I saw last season. I pulled up some game logs, trying to get a feel for their actual usage, not just the final numbers.
Thinking About Olave
First, I looked hard at Chris Olave. Kid’s talented, no doubt. Smooth routes, gets separation. You see the flashes, the potential for big plays. He handled decent volume last year even with shaky QB play sometimes.
Things I liked:
- Pure talent and route running.
- Should be the main target hog in that Saints offense.
- Young, still has upside potential.
Things that worried me:
- Derek Carr. Can he consistently support a top-tier WR? Sometimes looks good, sometimes… not so much.
- The overall Saints offense feels a bit stuck, unpredictable.
- Maybe defenses start really keying in on him?
Thinking About Ridley
Then I switched over to Calvin Ridley. He had a pretty solid comeback year with Jacksonville, showed he still had juice. Now he’s moved over to Tennessee.
Things I liked:
- He walks in likely as the WR1 for the Titans. Big contract usually means big role.
- Showed last year he can still produce after the long layoff.
- Maybe Will Levis takes a step forward and targets him heavily?
Things that worried me:
- He’s not exactly young anymore in football terms.
- New team, new QB, new system. Takes time to click.
- Tennessee’s offense could still be pretty run-heavy, even with a new coach. How many targets will there really be?
- Was his production last year more about Trevor Lawrence and that Jags offense?
Making the Call
So I weighed it all up. Kept going back and forth. Olave feels like the ceiling play, the guy who could potentially finish higher if things break right. Ridley feels… maybe safer? Like his floor might be a bit more stable week-to-week given the presumed target share on a new team paying him big bucks.
But ‘safe’ doesn’t always win you leagues. I thought about my own team build, what I needed.
In the end, I found myself leaning towards Chris Olave more often than not when forced to choose between them straight up. It really came down to betting on the younger talent and the clearer path to being the undisputed alpha receiver on his own team, even with the QB questions. Ridley’s situation just felt a little more uncertain with the new team and offense, despite the contract. Felt like Olave’s raw ability gave him the slight edge in my book.
It’s just my process, how I landed on it after chewing on it for a while. Could easily blow up in my face, that’s fantasy for ya. But you gotta make a call based on what you see and feel. So, Olave it was for me in most scenarios.
