The New Orleans Saints have never shied away from making moves to put the team in a better position to win, no matter what the outlook for the season is. This was the case last season when the team traded a 7th for John Ridgeway to begin the season, and at the time I am writing this, it has happened again. New Orleans has traded a 2026 4th and a 2027 7th for Broncos WR Devaughn Vele.
When the news was first revealed that Vele was being traded to the Saints, it looked like an exceptional move due to what
the second-year WR brings to the offense. Vele is 6-foot-5, had a nearly 500-yard season in his rookie year, and he will be the contested catch threat in the Saints’ WR room. One of the main issues with the Saints’ roster has been the lack of size with the pass catchers. Having flexibility at the receiver is extremely important to any offense, especially with a younger group at QB. Although there has not been a starting QB named yet, either Spencer Rattler or Tyler Shough would benefit from more size in the receiver room. TE Juwan Johnson can not be the only safety blanket for these young QBs, and now Vele will be that player. Last year, with QB Bo Nix, Vele was one of his favorite targets in contested catch situations. This is a massive piece the Saints were missing. Now although this is a huge positive for the move, there are also some negatives.
As I mentioned a bit before, the Saints’ odds of making the playoffs are low, and with so many questions around this team, giving up draft capital for a 27-year-old WR is interesting. Considering what the Saints gave up, a 4th round pick is not an easy asset to relinquish. Although no selection is guaranteed, New Orleans has already benefited from their two 4th-round picks (Danny Stutsman and Quincy Riley) from the 2025 draft. Now, there is one aspect that the Saints may be relying on to gain back some draft capital, and that is compensatory picks. Due to CB Paulson Adebo leaving in free agency for the Giants, the Saints are projected to get a 4th round pick. One major caveat to note is that this pick could be kept away from New Orleans. If the newly signed CB Isaac Yiadom plays significant amount of snaps this season, the Saints will not get that projected 4th round compensatory selection. This means New Orleans would be without a 4th rounder in 2026. Again, this may not mean much if Vele performs well, but it is something to consider moving forward.
The Saints made their move to improve the WR depth and added a great contested catch threat, but was it worth giving up a 4th round pick?
