Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Chris Olave

Friday, May 2, 12:02 PM

Carolina Panthers veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen said that he talked with his family, and they wanted him to play in 2025. He plans to go through a similar process after this season, which is the final year of his contract. Depending on how the 34-year-old feels and what his family thinks after the 2025 campaign, Thielen could hang up his cleats and retire. He's returning for a third season in Carolina after playing in a career-low 10 games in 2024 due to a hamstring injury. In those 10 games, he caught 48 of his 62 targets for 615 yards and five touchdowns. He should continue to be a trusted weapon for young quarterback Bryce Young out of the slot this year, but the addition of first-round rookie wideout Tetairoa McMillan will surely make Thielen harder to trust as a WR3/flex in fantasy based on volume alone like he was in 2023, when he recorded the third 1,000-yard season of his career on 103 targets.

Wednesday, April 23, 1:54 PM

ESPN's Katherine Terrell reports that the New Orleans Saints are picking up wide receiver Chris Olave's fifth-year option on Wednesday. Despite playing in a career-low eight games in 2024 in his third year in the NFL due to multiple concussions, the Saints picking up the former first-rounder's fifth-year option was a no-brainer. The 24-year-old Ohio State alumni is scheduled to make $16.8 million guaranteed on his fifth-year option in 2026. Olave cleared 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first two NFL seasons on 159 total receptions and nine touchdowns, so he has proven he has the chops to operate as a WR1 for fantasy managers when he's healthy. However, his head injuries from last year could scare many fantasy managers off this fall, as well as New Orleans' quarterback situation with Derek Carr possibly needing shoulder surgery.