On August 20th, I was out to dinner, having a nice time, when I felt my phone vibrate with many notifications. I knew something had happened, and my best guess was that the New Orleans Saints had made a move. Well, I was right, and the team made a trade that was heavily scrutinized.
With their lack of contested catch threat in the wide receiver room, the Saints traded away a fourth-round pick in 2026 to the Denver Broncos for Devaughn Vele. When I saw that, it made immediate sense given the current
WR group, but for a rebuilding team entering its first year under a new coach, trading away draft capital is very risky. This was not the Davon Godchaux trade, which was for a 7th-round pick. That fourth-round pick was probably going to be an early one.
If this trade had not worked out, it could have legitimately hurt the Saints’ future, and early on, it looked like that was going to be the outcome. Vele was not playing enough on offense, and it did not make sense why. Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, and Brandin Cooks all brought similar playstyles to the offense, and the Saints still did not have a big-bodied WR out there. Slowly, he was playing a bit more, but it was clear to analysts and fans that his lack of a role was confusing.
This stayed true until the Atlanta Falcons played the Saints on November 23rd. At this point, Cooks was set to be realeased and Shaheed was traded to the Seahawks. Vele was now going to be elevated to WR2, and he did not disappoint. He made some big catches when QB Tyler Shough needed him most, and although the Saints did not win this game, we finally saw a preview of what these two can do together. From this game on, Vele became Shough’s go-to guy, and he was making insane catches. Finally, Vele was playing like a WR worth at least a fourth-round pick.
His final stats will not jump off the page, only having 293 recieving yards and 2 touchdowns, but if anyone watched the games, he was vital to Shough’s success. The only bad part was that Vele got injured and was ruled out after the second win against the Panthers.
Going into the offseason, Vele is now viewed as a starter in the WR room and an important piece for the offense. Although he may not be a WR2, and the Saints still need to find one this offseason, Vele as a WR3 is excellent.
