The rumor going into draft week was that Jordyn Tyson had been flying up draft boards, and he had a short wait on Thursday before Roger Goodell announced he’d be heading to New Orleans as the No. 8 overall selection. Tyson will be the WR2 here immediately with the Saints previously sporting minimal WR talent beyond Chris Olave. Let’s dig into Tyson’s fantasy outlook.
JORDYN TYSON
- Tyson was brilliant when he was on the field in college. The 470 receiving yards he posted as a freshman at Colorado don’t jump off the page, but the Buffaloes barely passed for 2,000 yards that year, and Tyson only played nine games. He tore his ACL, MCL, and PCL, causing him to play in only three games the following season after he transferred to Arizona State. Once healthy in 2024, Tyson had a monster 75/1,101/10 season before another injury-plagued senior season in which he still topped a 50% Dominator Rating. Tyson is regarded as a creative route runner who can play all over the field, and the ceiling looks limitless here if he can stay healthy. The fact that he got drafted so high despite a litany of injuries in college demonstrates how the NFL views him when healthy.
- Olave is coming off a career season in which he posted personal bests in targets, receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Beyond him, the Saints have very little at WR, so Tyson will have no trouble finding a big role immediately. Tyler Shough impressed down the stretch and nearly pulled off an Offensive Rookie of the Year comeback, and New Orleans’ offense could be quietly fun in 2026 if Shough’s play sustains, particularly with how fast Kellen Moore loves to play (New Orleans led the league in pace in 2025). Unlike No. 4 overall pick Carnell Tate, Tyson has a significant roadblock between him and becoming the top target earner on his team, but it’s not totally unimaginable that Tyson could challenge Olave for the team lead in targets over the second half of the season. Of course, that will require both his game translating in a big way and him staying healthy (a real gamble, based on his collegiate career), so we’re a long way from making that a reality. Still, this is a good landing spot for Tyson: He’s the immediate WR2 on an ascending, up-tempo offense with very little talent behind him at WR3+.
OTHER SAINTS PASS CATCHERS
- The Saints desperately needed pass-catching help with Devaughn Vele and Mason Tipton next in line on the WR depth chart behind Chris Olave pre-draft. From a projections standpoint, this shouldn’t ding Olave too much since it should have been assumed they’d add WR help. Our projections had a significant target share assigned to nobody, assuming they’d add someone, so the dock to Olave following this pick was minimal. With that being said, there is some world where Tyson is simply so dominant out of the gate that he legitimately pushes Olave for WR1 duties. That is, of course, unlikely for a rookie to outpace one of the better wide receivers in the game, and Olave should be the presumed clear WR1 entering 2026 after a career season last year.
- Vele is a gritty run-blocking receiver who now gets pushed down to WR3. He’s not fantasy-relevant, but he will see the field for the Saints still.
