5th year option deadline for Olave/Penning is May 1st

[OzzieSaint]

No thanks.
I'd rather build through the draft, than pay for players who are not healthy or not performing.

 

[RadsRock]

Olave just doesn’t have the trade value to move him. But I also can't see picking up his option. Let this year play out and see.

Penning is now decent and could become good, but at this point is not worth 17 mill. Extend him and kick the can.

 

[BoNcHiE]

Penning should realize we gave him chances no other team would have and sign a reasonable extension.

 

[WhoDat?DrewDat]

Penning should realize we gave him chances no other team would have and sign a reasonable extension.

Unfortunately it doesn't work like that.

 

[livefromDC]

For all the popular talk involving an Olave trade of some kind (across multiple threads), his medicals, the impending end of his rookie deal and the depth of this draft at WR suggest he'll net minimal return for any such trade. It's not his draft status as a #1 that will be on the minds of GMs making a call, by any means. The more attractive option may be to wait for the compensatory pick, whether after his rookie deal, or after his second contact.

Olave is an elite separator, dogged by fans who are easily frustrated by players like him, who don't show the iron man invincibility they expect from their gladiators, but he may still produce a lot of worthwhile snaps here or elsewhere. A new contract probably needs to be loaded with incentives to reflect his status as such.

Penning feels like someone the team will look to retain, whether they tag him while working out the cheaper mid-term deal, or negotiating that deal before May comes. His future is at tackle, as those with any knowledge of the OT/OG position have repeated many times. The draft's depth in OTs able to transition to guard give the team options to develop the next man up at RT if Penning doesn't sufficiently pan out over the next 2-3 years, or to leave them at OG accordingly.

I'm not aching for Olave to be traded, but I don't see the depth at WR you see in this draft. It pales in comparison to last year's class. It pales in comparison to next year's class. Between all 3 years, Tet would probably be 8th or so ranked.

Olave is better than any prospective WR coming out this year. The concussions drop his value from the Saints being able to demand a 1st but it certainly doesn't completely wipe it out. So I definitely think there will be a market if the Saints want to move him and I think they do.

 

[TruSaint]

Say what you want, continued work and growth by penning and put a decent guard next to him I think he could flourish.

 

[WhoDat?DrewDat]

Say what you want, continued work and growth by penning and put a decent guard next to him I think he could flourish.

Flourish is tough. I think a lot of us are forgetting he still lead the entire league in OT pressures given up.

 

[TribuneUK]

I'm not aching for Olave to be traded, but I don't see the depth at WR you see in this draft. It pales in comparison to last year's class. It pales in comparison to next year's class. Between all 3 years, Tet would probably be 8th or so ranked.

Olave is better than any prospective WR coming out this year. The concussions drop his value from the Saints being able to demand a 1st but it certainly doesn't completely wipe it out. So I definitely think there will be a market if the Saints want to move him and I think they do.

I think you're closer to right on the quality of this year's draft at WR, I haven't looked all that closely. But I also think the factors of draftees on tap, the nearness of Olave's rookie deal ending and his cost skyrocketing as a result, plus concussions means that he's not so valuable as people may like to wish/imagine.

 

[Geldo]

We drafted Penning as a raw prospect who would take time to adjust to the step up to the NFL.
It makes no sense to cut short that strategy by walking away from him after 3 years one of which was lost to injury.
If you’re going to commit to developing potential then we need to keep him on the team and keep improving his skills after a big step up last year. It would be preferable to resign him at a cheaper rate but we all know the salary cap means nothing to Khai

 

[Snakehead]

We drafted Penning as a raw prospect who would take time to adjust to the step up to the NFL.
It makes no sense to cut short that strategy by walking away from him after 3 years one of which was lost to injury.
If you’re going to commit to developing potential then we need to keep him on the team and keep improving his skills after a big step up last year. It would be preferable to resign him at a cheaper rate but we all know the salary cap means nothing to Khai

Agreed. It's always been know that he was a long term project. The FO knew this when they drafted him and he's still on course to develop into the player they thought he would.

Trevor Penning, Northern Iowa OT | NFL Draft Scouting Report

With a strong scouting report, can Northern Iowa OT Trevor Penning follow in Spencer Brown's footsteps and go early in the 2022 NFL Draft?

www.profootballnetwork.com

He certainly has the upside to be a high-level starter — upside that makes him worthy of early-Round 1 consideration –, but it might take longer than people think for him to get to that point.

 

[SigFreudianSlip]

Unfortunately it doesn't work like that.

Agreed, unless you’re Chris Godwin. Can’t believe he took 20 million less to stay with Tampa.

 

[jasonsw]

Olave is a good player but he has had concussion/head injury problems dating back to college.

Chris Olave's Concussion History

Here's a snapshot at Olave's concussion history.

www.si.com

I agree with trading him.

3 in less than a year is alarming. I don't see any team giving much for him this year. More valuable to keep this year and see how it goes

 

[St. Widge]

Flourish is tough. I think a lot of us are forgetting he still lead the entire league in OT pressures given up.

And he did that while getting plenty of help from TEs and RBs. I'm also not sure if Penning will continue the progress he has made under a new OL Coach. Dennison and Benton helped him to develop a lot as a run blocker and made him at least playable as a pass blocker, but I'm not sure if Nugent can do the same things with him. So, I think there is some risk he doesn't get better or even regresses.

 

[livefromDC]

I think you're closer to right on the quality of this year's draft at WR, I haven't looked all that closely. But I also think the factors of draftees on tap, the nearness of Olave's rookie deal ending and his cost skyrocketing as a result, plus concussions means that he's not so valuable as people may like to wish/imagine.

Yep, definitely things they will have to consider. And in any other year, I'd probably agree with you. This year, though, with the draft being less than stellar at the position, I can see it happening at some point, but you're right, probably not at the compensation people would like to see. If they're hoping for a Cooks type compensation, oddly enough, when the Saints netted a 1st round pick from New England, I dont see that happening. I think it's solidly in the realm of possibility that it even happens after the first round if the Saints come away with a pass catcher at #9.

 

[TribuneUK]

I'm prepared for the grumbling when/if he nets a 4th/5th and people forgetting how cheaply players in the final years of their contract are traded.