The start of training camps is extension season, with veterans who have been waiting for new deals coming to terms before putting their bodies at further risk.
One name to watch in the coming weeks is New Orleans Saints receiver Chris Olave, who enters the final year of his rookie contract coming off his third 1,000-plus-yard campaign in four seasons.
General manager Mickey Loomis said sides are inching their way toward a pact.
"We're having a lot of discussions," Loomis said Tuesday, via the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "We're just not there yet. We're hopeful."
Olave has proven to be one of the most productive receivers in the NFL despite difficult surroundings for much of his first four seasons. The smooth route-runner put up 1,163 yards and nine touchdowns on 100 catches last season as the go-to target in an offense that struggled for much of the early part of the season.
With 11 receivers making at or north of $30 million per year, and two above the $40 million per year mark (Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Ja'Marr Chase), the question is where Olave will land on the scale. Loomis admitted that the wideout's injury history is a "variable" to consider but not enough to keep a deal from coming to fruition.
"We want to get it done," Loomis said. "Chris and his agents, Jason and Drew Rosenhaus, I know they want to get it done. We all do, but it's got to be right for both parties."
Olave suffered multiple concussions in 2024, knocking him out for half the season. In four seasons, he’s never played a 17-game slate, missing Week 18 last year due to blood clot issues, which also kept him out of some offseason workouts in 2026.
The 26-year-old is ready for training camp and not expected to hold in despite not having a new deal. The Saints view him as a centerpiece of a team on the rise after five straight seasons outside the playoffs, and back-to-back fourth-place finishes in the NFC South.
"Chris has been as enthusiastic and optimistic as anyone," Loomis said. "So I really appreciate the way he's conducted himself. And that's not just this year -- it's every year with Chris."